April Weather
by PerditaAlottachocolate
Summary: April weather - rain and sunshine both together. Thanks to Adrien's overeager fans everyone in Paris now believes Marinette is his girlfriend. It seems like nothing can be done, so the teens decide to continue with the charade and start fake dating. They're just good friends having fun, right? What could possibly go wrong? A connected story for Adrinette April 2018.
1. Hide

_Author's Note: Send some help. Apparently I'm out of my mind to write a connected story for Adrinette April. Prepare for a rollecoaster just like in that proverb - "April weather - rain and sunshine both together". This is how this fic is going to roll._

 _I am taking you on a trip with the help from the prompts from AdrinetteApril . tumblr . com_

 _This is the first time I'm going to be writing from day to day without any big plans or outlines, just vague idea where I want to go. So this is going to be an adventure for me too._

 _Feel free to suggest events, send prompts (like sentences to use or begin with) and requests to my tumblr ask box on perditaalottachocolate-blog . tumblr . com. I will try to incorporate them as I find them fit and dedicate them to you. Anon asks are opened so you can do this even if you don't have a tumblr account._

 _Here we go! I hope it's going to be fun._

* * *

 **Day 1. Hide**

As soon as Adrien put one foot on the pavement in front of the school he knew this was going to be a bad day. Gorilla, who apparently knew it too, was urging him to get out of the car with short grunts, while shielding him from the mob of teenagers and reporters. Wherever Adrien looked he saw a sea of phones, microphones and cameras flashing in his eyes. His bodyguard patiently made a way for him through this crowd.

But if Adrien thought this was over when he was safely deposited behind the school doorstep, he was wrong. Another set of phones was immediately directed at him, this time from the student body of Collège Françoise Dupont. The boy sighed deeply. This was going to be a looooooong day.

He braced himself and started wading through the crowds, ignoring the mantra "radiant, carefree, dreamy" and the accompanying chuckles. What he couldn't ignore however where the whispers.

' _So he has a girlfriend now?'_

' _Marinette Washername from Bustier class.'_

' _Too bad. I'd love to have me some dreamy pie and his fragrance.'_

' _Apparently they've been secretly dating for months now!'_

' _Oh, that sneaky baker girl! She's smarter than she looks!'_

' _That pathetic goat with the grace of a hatstand?'_

He felt bad. Really, really bad. This wasn't what he wanted to happen, yet it would never cross his mind how awful things would turn overnight. There was one thought that bounced in his mind, resurfacing with each mean whisper or a flash of a camera.

Poor Marinette.

How would he look her in the eyes after this? How was she coping with the amount of curiosity, jealousy and hate, that seemed to seep even from the walls. He reached to the pocket where he kept the lucky bracelet she'd given him. He needed all the luck right now, and maybe even more - to share it with his friend. And then he remembered - he lost it in the subway yesterday, when they were running away from another crowd.

Oh, now he understood the fallout. He had lost his lucky charm and bad things must have already caught wind of that. Before this realisation he was just saddened, but now he actually started to panic. Something big was coming, and without the bracelet he wasn't sure he would be able to deal with it. He felt the hairs on the back of his neck rising and his ears tweaked.

He was right. Something big and bad hit sooner, than he expected.

' _ADRIIIIIIKIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIINSSSSSSSSSSSS! WAAAAAAIIIIIT FOR MEEEEEEEEEEE!'_

The shrill of Chloe's voice was one tone short of breaking glass.

' _MARINETTE IS NOT HIS GIRLFRIEND, YOU STUPID BRAT! AND I WILL PROVE IT TO YOU!'_ She hollered making her way through the hall with some hapless fangirl in tow. Sabrina was trying to keep up with them, with a very unhappy face. He could only guess when Chloe found the pictures she took it out on her friend.

' _I DON'T CARE ABOUT STUPID PICTURES!' She roared._

Adrien decided it was time to turn tail. He didn't want to face the Bourgeois destroyer under red alert.

He broke into run, students getting out of his way when he gained speed. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Marinette ahead of him. She was walking backwards and trying to get away from a group of very mean looking girls waving the godforsaken ad prints at her. Without thinking he adjusted his direction to intercept.

'Marinette!' he cried as he was nearing her.

She looked at him with her bluest eyes of a deer caught in the headlights, but firmly caught the offered hand and followed him without missing a beat.

They ran side by side, holding hands, which probably wasn't the smartest move considering the already circulating gossip. Adrien risked a glance at her, surprised with the shortage of squeaks, stutters and slips. In her features he saw only sheer determination and focus, that he swore looked extremely familiar. Their bodies moved in flawless unison. She knew exactly when he wanted to adjust direction or turn, and followed his lead perfectly. He was reminded of all the other times they had to run together, and realised that this wasn't an exception. They moved like a team with proficiency he hadn't experience with anyone on this side of his black mask. He stumbled, his brain short circuiting on that thought, but Marinette balanced him out and didn't let him fall. Adrien squeezed her hand to thank her and concentrated on the here and now. It wasn't the time to mull over these particular observations.

They finally reached an empty part of the corridor and the door Adrien was heading to. He could already hear the steps of the students chasing them and Chloe's shrieks. Without thinking he reached for the doorknob, that wobbled in his hand, pushed Marinette inside and slammed the door behind them.

In the silence that fell over them he heard the creak of the doorknob slipping off the latch and falling to the floor. It landed on the corridor with a clank and rolled to the side.

The pursuit came and passed their hideout oblivious to their location. Soon all the sounds on the corridor died out, and only their heavy breathing could be heard in the narrow space of the maintenance closet. Marinette slowly fell her way to the handle on their side and pulled.

It stayed in her hand.

'Ooops,' she squeaked.

Adrien thumped the back of his head into the wall with a frustrated groan.

'Well, looking on the bright side,' he murmured slipping to the floor, 'the hiding part worked really well.'

* * *

 _AN: Please let me know what you think of this fic. Your reviews, favs and follows inspire me to write more!_

 _For future reference sorry for any mistakes or typos. This time Remasa has managed to beta read it really quickly, but that might not be a regular thing due to writing on a daily basis and the shortage of time._

 _Just a reminder that my ask box on perditaalottachocolate-blog . tumblr . com is open for requests concerning this story (and generally for your questions). I can't promise I'm going to use them all, but I will try!_

 _One last thing: I probably won't be able to keep a daily update schedule and I'm not sure I will do all the prompts. But I'm going to do my best!_


	2. Gaming

_Author's Note: Thank you for all your reviews, follows and favs! I'm very glad you liked that first chapter._

* * *

 **Day 2. Gaming**

Marinette was silently thanking whatever divine entity responsible for the darkness of the maintenance room. She felt her cheeks burning with a fire, that was only partly a result of their frantic run through school corridors. Adrien's proximity was responsible for another part of it, and the blame for the rest of it went to "the girlfriend issue".

She honestly would have never thought how much trouble she would get into when she got photographed with Adrien the previous day, and in very compromising situations (and outfit) nonetheless. But of course he was worth all of it and more. She'd do this again if he asked. Although she had to admit that at first being called his girlfriend felt really nice, the novelty melted away pretty quickly in the face of the ambush that awaited her at school that morning. Even in her wildest dreams she never would have thought what would be the consequences of Adrien officially getting a girlfriend. She probably should have known better.

'Sorry about that,' she heard his companion apologetic voice. 'I had no idea this whole affair would blow up on us like that. On you especially.'

'Don't worry about it,' she replied immediately. 'I'm sure they will get bored and the news will get old pretty quickly.'

'You don't mind?' Adrien sounded so surprised, her heart stuttered. 'What have I done to deserve a friend like you?'

Ah, here we go again. Welcome to the friendzone, ladies and gentlemen. Well, Marinette thought, this at least was better than crazyfangirlzone. She'd take what she was given and work with that.

She reached out and found his hand. 'Adrien,' she whispered, 'I feel honored you consider me your friend.' She felt him squeezing her fingers in reply. 'That's just what friends do.'

'You're amazing,' the boy replied in awe. 'If it had been Chloe in your place…'

She heard him shaking his head. He didn't need to finish. The vision of Chloe marathoning social and traditional media, boasting about their "relationship", even in good faith to keep the crazed fans away, was enough of a fuel for a decent nightmare.

A nervous giggle escaped her. For a second she got scared he would feel offended, but he actually joined her. At first with a snort, that broke into chuckles and then that pearly laughter that made her fall for him. It was impossible not to reply with a laugh of her own.

'You are the best fake girlfriend I could have ever asked for,' he chortled happily.

'What can a girl do when a famous model with his own fragrance offers to be her fake boyfriend,' she quipped, suppressing the scream of disappointment of her heart.

'Thank you,' Adrien sighed after a while and squeezed her hand again. 'I'm glad you're comfortable with this and I promise I will sort it out somehow.'

'No problem,' she offered. Really what else could she do. 'Whatever you do, it can't make this worse and I doubt people are going to buy anything now.'

'Agreed. We need to wait this madness out. Although,' he hesitated and she sensed a teasing lilt to his voice. 'We could have some fun at their expense…'

'What do you have in mind?' Marinette wished she sounded more confident. A few scenarios presented themselves inside her head. They were gathering dust on "Adrien fantasies" shelf long enough. 'What kind of fun?' she asked hopefully. But even in her wildest dreams she would never expect for him to reply with _that_ line.

'How would you feel about **fake dating**?' Adrien asked slyly, his voice like treacle.

Marinette could only gape, despite the darkness of the closet. She opened her mouth a few times, but no sounds came out. Her throat felt drier than the Sahara desert in the middle of summer.

'Oh gosh, I'm sorry!' the boy exclaimed. 'That was too much and stupid! Please don't be offended!'

Afraid that this opportunity might be lost any moment now she finally found her voice.

'Nope! That pedea is irfect!' she spluttered. 'I mean that's a perfect idea, Adrien!' she corrected. 'Let's have some fun. How do we start?'

A phone chirped somewhere in the darkness. Adrien fished it out from wherever he kept it and a faint light illuminated the lower half of his face. His lips stretched into a wicked grin and his eyes glowed with acid green in the darkness.

'By winning some money of course,' he replied.

'M-money?'

'You know how gaming is forbidden at school and students shouldn't make bets of any kind, right?' he asked, typing something at the same time.

She nodded, but then remembered he couldn't see her, so she added an uncertain 'Yes'.

'Well, apparently there is quite a handsome pool of money to win off people who say we're not a couple,' Adrien explained showing her a text message. 'I just asked Nino to place some wagers in Mlle Kubdel's illegal gaming house. He'll let me know what did he bet on, so that we can work our way to a result in his favor. And he'll share with us.'

Marinette giggled.

'Imagine all the ice cream we could eat with that money,' he winked at her and the sight took her breath away. With the upper half of his face dark, and that green gleam in his eyes he looked a bit… _a lot…_ like Chat Noir. Nope. No, no, no. No freaking way. Her imagination was clearly playing a trick on her. It was the lack of air, and all.

Marinette took a deep calming breath.

'Oh my, I'm sorry. I should have thought about this sooner!' the boy helped her up. 'More fresh air up here,' he explained. 'Nino and Alya have already told Mme Bustier we're here and how this happened. The janitor should get us out and Principal Damocles is having a talk with the rest of the students now about this morning's situation. Just breathe,' he rubbed calming circles on her back, which made her want to crawl out of her skin with excitement. 'We'll be out of here in a minute.'

Soon they heard the steps and grunts and the door was opened. A very unhappy janitor rushed them out of the closet and started fixing the doorknob.

'Well then, _girlfriend of mine_ ,' Adrien smiled at her and offered her his hand. 'Ready to have some fun?'

'Sure,' she returned the smile and gulped.

In her chest, her poor heart skipped a few beats. _Sure_ , it whispered, _what can possibly go wrong?_

* * *

 _AN: Yeah, this kinda happened all by itself? I have no explanation... But I will gladly hear what you think of this chapter!_

 _Just a reminder that my ask box on perditaalottachocolate-blog . tumblr . com is open for requests concerning this story (and generally for your questions). I can't promise I'm going to use them all, but I will try!_

 _Check out my other fics, love and non-love square ones!_

 _A sincere thank you to Remasa for betareading this._


	3. Fencing

**Day 3: Fencing**

A few days of fake dating went by, filled with giggles and knowing glances. And of course a jealousy fit from Chloe. She still wasn't talking to him and it stung a bit, but Adrien had no doubt that she would stop sulking eventually. In the meantime he enjoyed the lack of her shrieks and clingy intrusions into his personal space.

A personal space that he now shared with his fake girlfriend, which was surprisingly pleasant. He was told on numerous occasions that he was very physical while interacting with people, but Marinette took it all well. She had never complained about him touching her shoulder, holding hands or hugging her before, and now as his "girlfriend" she gracefully accepted even more attention, going with their secret plan. That delicate blush dusting her cheeks at those times was something he came to enjoy. It made this whole ordeal more believable and if he was being honest with himself, it wasn't as if his cheeks hadn't colored in her proximity. Adrien was actually surprised how comfortable he felt in her company and he could only hope it was the same for her.

Over those last few days they had fallen into a routine of a kind. Adrien would arrive earlier in the morning and wait for Marinette at school entrance. Then hand in hand they would march up to classroom chatting happily about everything and nothing and smirking at other students, who still were trying to work them out. After classes Adrien would walk Marinette home, or she would walk him to his fencing or basketball practice.

At his shy request she agreed to stay a few times and cheer him as he sparred with other teammates. He could have sworn that her presence always brought him luck.

Today she was peeking at the fencing session from the upper level and sketching at the same time. Adrien cast a look in her direction and she timidly waved at him. An unexpected warmth spread through his limbs just as Jean tapped his shoulder to signal he was ready.

That boy was fighting like a madman lately, very aggressively, bordering dirty at times. Adrien had to pull a few of Chat Noir tricks to beat him and even then it wasn't an easy job. Today his opponent was extra mean so Adrien doubled his efforts to take the initiative.

'Are you trying to impress someone here, Agreste?' Jean panted after his first _touch_.

'I don't know what you're talking about,' he shrugged. He wouldn't allow the boy to annoy and deconcentrate him.

'Her,' his opponent waved his sabre to the balcony where Marinette sketched furiously. She stuck out her tongue and that adorable wrinkle appeared on her forehead.

'Marinette?' Adrien asked surprised, 'She's just m-'

'Yeah, yeah, Monsieur Dreamy,' Jean mocked, 'she's your _girlfriend_ , I know. We all saw the pictures.'

'You have a problem with that?' he frowned, caught off guard by his teammate's anger.

'It figures you'd snatch the best girl to yourself,' the boy grumbled bending his sabre and taking the stance again.

Adrien's frown deepened. This pinch was something new. He'd experienced jealousy before, over his modelling career or money, but never over a relationship. And despite the fact that it wasn't a real achievement, but a ruse, pride filled him at the thought that Marinette agreed to be his, even if fake, girlfriend.

Jean moved without warning, knocking Adrien's sabre from his hand and tripping him. 'You fight like a girl!' he cackled nastily, but soon his breathing hitched as another blade appeared at his neck.

'Got something against girls, you little prick?' Kagami drawled through clenched teeth.

Jean gulped and shook his head in denial.

'Then go and check if you are in the changing room,' she spat raising a brow. The boy fled.

Kagami offered Adrien a hand and pulled him to his feet.

'How are things in paradise?' she smirked nodding in Marinette's direction.

He felt the blush crawling onto his cheeks and neck. 'Great!' he squeaked.

'I'm glad you moved to the next level with your good friend,' the girl teased. 'That leaves me a bigger chance with Ladybug.'

Adrien gaped at her in confusion. He knew she was a fan, the two of them often fangirling about the heroine after their practice, but now she suggested there was something more to her fascination.

'Oh, come on, don't look so shocked,' Kagami nudged him with her elbow. 'I'm not a Ladybug fan for her heroics only,' she winked at him and her gaze drifted to Marinette again. 'But you've found yourself quite a nice replacement, I must say.'

'Excuse me?'

She shrugged and rubbed his cheek, 'You clearly have a type, dear.'

Did he? He cast a glance at his fake girlfriend. True, Marinette looked a lot like Ladybug, but many girls did. Kagami herself had hair and built so similar to the heroine, that initially he had found himself thinking if she might be his Lady. Of course that was before he recalled she just arrived at Paris, while he and his masked partner had been fighting together for months at that point. Getting akumatized was also a decent clue to her not being Ladybug after all.

'She's a cutie,' Kagami whispered in his ear and only then he realised he had been gawking at his friend for a while. 'Be careful not to let her go,' she said and sauntered in the direction of the changing room.

Her advice still rang in his ears when he left school to walk Marinette home. A barbed wire ball of guilt settled in the pit of his stomach.

* * *

 _Author's Note: I'm on my mobile for these next few days so this might be the last update before the weekend. Writing on mobile is very difficult and tiring..._

 _As usual I ask you to share your thoughts on this chapter. Your comments make me want to continue this story._


	4. Dinner

_Author's Note: I am still away from home and from my computer so the next few updates may be delayed. I really like keeping schedules so this bothers me._

 _Also this story took an unexpected turn away from pure fluff. I am doing what I can to regain control._

* * *

 **Day 4. Dinner with parent(s)**

Marinette couldn't decide if she was in heaven or in hell. For the past few days she had to pinch herself from time to time to check if this wasn't a dream. She had yet to determine if she believed her self-inflicted reality check. She briefly considered asking Adrien to pinch her but on the other hand she didn't want to push her luck.

How she could keep her wits in her fake boyfriend's company was still a mystery. On the inside she had melted into a pile of goo long ago. On the outside she played her part the best she could, Adrien's smile and a squeeze of his fingers the highest reward she could hope for.

After agreeing to the idea of fake dating Marinette got a scolding of a lifetime from Tikki. Objectively she knew the kwami was right, warning her about the consequences of this decision. She was lying to her friends, classmates and colleagues. She was lying to total strangers. Only Alya and her parents knew the truth and unsurprisingly they weren't pleased with it, even if they seemingly accepted her reasoning that she was doing this for Adrien.

But as Tikki pointed out, Marinette was also lying to herself. She was lying when she claimed the whole affair didn't affect her, that she didn't took pleasure out of Adrien's company. It was _so nice_ to be near him so often, to talk to him, to hold hands and conversations. They never did anything more than hugging and cheek kisses, but her heart fluttered at those activities alone. She was sure she wouldn't have survived anything more, at least not now. Thankfully those were more than enough to sustain the illusion of their relationship.

'You're setting yourself up for a very nasty heartbreak, Marinette,' Tikki warned her at every opportunity and the jab usually took at least half of the satisfaction Marinette felt when in Adrien's presence.

This was too good to be true and to last, so it didn't take long for her disastrous streak to rear its ugly head. As she left the school in Adrien's company that day instead of being walked home like she expected, she was kindly (not really) asked (try requested) to accompany him to the mansion as Monsieur Agreste wished to meet her. She could tell Adrien was as surprised as her and he didn't exactly look happy about the whole ordeal.

Mlle Sancoeur and Adrien's bodyguard, whatever his real name was, made it impossible for them to talk freely, but Marinette didn't like the slightly panicked expression on her friend's face.

She reached for her phone.

[Me 16:32 Is everything okay?]

Adrien's cell pinged in his pocket. He frowned at the notification flashing her a questioning look, but she just rolled her eyes to his screen and slightly ducked her head. In a moment her own phone vibrated in her hand.

[ BFBF 16:33 My father doesn't know]

Marinette went pale. She felt his hand squeezing her forearm gently. Her phone vibrated again.

[ BFBF 16:33 I'm sorry, I couldn't find the right moment]

She nodded. From what she already knew this probably meant "I haven't seen him in the last few days".

[Me 16:34 What do we do now then?]

[ BFBF 16:35 Improvise. Just follow my lead ;)]

Marinette glared at him and the smile he sent her in reply was as fake as their relationship. Adrien could improvise all he wanted but he didn't know about her encounter with his father when she brought the miraculous book back. How would Monsieur Agreste react when he sees that Adrien's admirer somehow became Adrien's girlfriend?

[Me 16:38 you need to tell him the truth]

She sent the text before she could change her mind.

Adrien read it and the panic returned to his eyes. He shook his head barely noticeably. Marinette raised her brows. "Please", she mouthed. He pursed his lips and lowered his gaze.

Marinette moved away from him to look out of the car window. She mourned the loss of his body heat just then realising how close to each other they were sitting and how comfortable it made her feel. Her stomach twisted into a double eight. She tried her best not to fidget nervously in her seat.

Her phone vibrated once more and at same time Adrien put his hand on top of her own.

[ BFBF 16:43 okay, I ll tell him, but I will do this my way]

[ BFBF 16:43 he is… not easy to talk to]

Now that, Marinette thought bitterly, was an understatement of the century. But she didn't push away his hand and she returned his shy smile. She instantly felt bad for asking this of him. After all he knew his father better than anyone. Who was she to tell him what to do.

[Me 16:44 that's fine. Do whatever you think is best]

[Me 16:44 I trust my best fake boy friend ;* ]

Adrien snorted at his screen and finally his smile reached his eyes. Unfortunately that was the moment the car rolled behind the gates and the bodyguard opened the door for her.

Showtime, Marinette thought smoothing her jacket and bracing herself before walking into the fashion lion's den.

'Take your friend to the dining room, Adrien,' Mlle Sancoeur instructed in her cold, emotionless voice. 'Your father will join you shortly.'

The boy nodded and led her to the large room on the right. The table was already set and Adrien encourage her to help herself to some hors d'oeuvre. He said it might take a while before his father gets there.

He was right. The server came with soup and there still was no sign of Monsieur Agreste. Adrien did his best to make her feel comfortable. Thanks to his efforts by the time second course appeared on the table she was giggling happy at his awful jokes, cheeks red and eyes twinkling. To her utmost surprise Adrien was an A class jokester, with a sense of humor that could rival Chat's. Marinette briefly entertained the idea of introducing them to each other for the sole purpose of the resulting pun-off. On second thought the amount of corny jokes could actually be lethal so she eventually abandoned this plan.

She forgot all about the stress of facing her fashion idol when Adrien was touching her so tenderly each time she burst in laughter, when he was cackling at his own puns and when she retaliated with quips of her own. There was only one other person she felt as free with, but she never met him sans black mask. That thought made her frown mid joke and Adrien froze next to her startled with the sudden change.

Yet before she was able to assure him nothing was wrong the door to the room burst open and Gabriel Agreste stormed in, with a scowl of a hail cloud.

Their eyes met and Marinette could have sworn a lightning struck outside.

'It's you?' the man raised a brow, his gaze skipping over her figure. He didn't look pleased.

* * *

 _AN: Let me remind you how much I appreciate your reviews, favs and follows. They make me want to write more._


	5. Comfort

**Day 5: Comfort**

' _It's you?'_

Adrien scrunched his nose. He knew his father was snippy, but never without a reason. Why this dry, half-impolite question replaced a customary greeting? No "Good evening". No "Welcome" or "Nice to meet you". The boy froze looking for an explanation, until he remembered that Gabriel must have expected a new face, while he already had met Marinette during the hat competition. Not directly of course, but she might have looked familiar.

The girl rose stiffly from her seat and gave his father a little curtsy. He replied with a scrutinizing gaze of a basilisk. For a moment Adrien wondered if the man tried to set his friend on fire. Marinette looked so pale he was afraid she might faint on him, but with a power Adrien never would have suspected she had, she held Gabriel's glare.

'Ah, father,' he decided to put an end to the staring duel. 'I'm glad you remember Marinette from my class.' He gently took her hand. That was his way of helping her to relax and be herself. Too late he realised how it might be read. Her eyes widened and her face went from white to red in an instant, but she didn't let go.

His father's gaze travelled to their entwined fingers. His brows furrowed. 'Hmm?' he hummed as if still considering Adrien's words.

'This is Marinette. My friend,' Adrien said a little louder.

'Your _girl_ friend,' Gabriel finally uttered with a scowl. 'And I had to learn this from social media, not from you, like I should.'

The boy straightened, suddenly grateful for the hand he was holding. 'This is my _friend_ , Marinette, father,' he repeated, feeling her grip tighten around his own palm. His heart filled with courage. 'We- _**I**_ need to tell you something,' he continued. And with the confidence he swore he didn't have a minute earlier, in clear unwavering voice, without any slips or stutters he explained how and why they did what they did. All that time he felt Marinette's warm hand in his and he wondered how the tables have turned. It was her touch that brought him comfort, that guided him through this and helped him reach the end of his speech.

'Fake dating,' his father muttered, when understanding finally replaced indignation. Both teens nodded in unison and a shadow of a smile danced on his face. It was so ephemeral Adrien wasn't sure if he hadn't imagined it after all, when the man's face turned into expressionless mask again.

Gabriel took of his glasses and rubbed the bridge of his nose. 'Mademoiselle Marinette,' he said with a sigh. 'My apologies for my late arrival. I regret that I couldn't spare you two more time today. But it's gotten late. Our chauffeur will take you home now.'

That was… not entirely unexpected if Adrien was honest with himself. It was just a more polite way of getting rid of her company. Considering Gabriel's history with his classmates this might have gotten much worse.

'Father, can I-' he started, intent on keeping their custom of walking his fake girlfriend home.

'Adrien, please show you _friend_ out and return to your room,' Gabriel was already at the door. 'I need to talk to you. Good evening, Mademoiselle.' And after a small bow he disappeared in the hall leaving the two stunned teens behind.

If Adrien thought this was the end of it, he thought wrong. When he finally appeared in his room after sending a very miserable Marinette on her way, Gabriel went straight for the throat.

'Why would you do that-' the man asked without preamble, '-that fake dating?' he snorted and shook his head.

'I told you, everyone thought-' the boy begun but the man silenced him with a raised hand.

'That idea was not only thoughtless and irresponsible, but also cruel,' he continued.

'But the brand-' Adrien tried to argue in vain.

'The brand would do much better,' Gabriel hissed, 'if its face wasn't having " _fun_ " at the cost of its image and lying to its fans. And that's just the beginning of it all,' he adjusted his glasses.

'I don't understand. I lied. You're angry. What more is there?'

'I've been watching you two at that dinner,' his father drawled. 'I've seen the pictures from the last few days.'

Adrien could only frown, unable to tell what his father was implying.

'She clearly has feelings for you, Adrien,' the man huffed in irritation.

'Of course she has feelings for me,' he smiled. 'We're friends!'

' _Romantic_ feelings,' an exasperated whine escaped the man. 'You can't be _that_ blind or naive, can you?

The boy replied with a snort and a shake of his head. This was ridiculous.

'Be careful,' Gabriel waved a warning finger at him.

'Or what? She's gonna use me?' the boy snickered.

'As far as I can see, it's the other way around,' his father replied matter of factly. ' _You_ are using _her_ , son.'

Adrien opened his mouth to protest, but again the man wouldn't let him.

'You can't play with other people's feelings like that,' he said and fixed the boy with another glare. 'I won't interfere,' he stated. 'You asked for more freedom, you got it. But it comes at a cost of taking responsibility. Think what you want of this, but mark my words. You're going to hurt that girl if you keep this charade up.'

With that the man turned and left him alone.

'You're wrong,' Adrien mumbled to the closed door. 'You're so wrong!' he stomped his foot, stubbornly refusing to accept his father's warning.

He looked at his hands. They felt cold and empty, devoid of the comfort of Marinette's touch. Suddenly the thought of ending the fake dating stunt scared him. He didn't want to finish this. He was smart. He wouldn't hurt Marinette. They were friends. They had a great time together. He wouldn't ruin anything. His father was simply wrong. And he'd prove it to him.

* * *

 _Author's Note: Phew, I had no idea how difficult it is to keep posting every day. I swear the fluff will return next week!_

 _A huge thank you to Remasa for her invaluable advice on this fic and this chapter in particular!_

 _Let me know, what you think of this update. Your reviews, follows and favs mean the world to me! Thank you for your support. I'm sorry if I reply to your comments with a delay, I will get to each and every one of them (I only can't reply to guest ones). But I'm doing my best to bring you a new chapter every day and this consumes most of my free time._

 _Visit me on perditaalottachocolate-blog . tumblr. com . I post this AdrinetteApril fic there, as well as snippets of my other works and my doodles._ _I also share quite a lot of miraculous stuff._


	6. Admiration

**Day 6: Admiration**

Marinette paced nervously inside her room. Window, carpet, sigh, three steps, wall, turn, three steps, carpet, window, sigh, rinse and repeat. She was angry, confused and worried sick. After getting home she sent Adrien a text asking him to call her when he'd be able to. That was over half an hour ago and he still kept quiet.

Tikki let her brood in her regrets. The little kwami retreated to the loft bed, mercifully sparing her the well deserved "I told you so". Monsieur Agreste's grand entrance was like a bucket of ice to the lovely warm evening she was having with Adrien.

 _Good timing_ , the voice of reason suggested. _Or you'd feel too comfortable for the_ _ **fake**_ _girlfriend you are._

Marinette swallowed hard. Who was she kidding? This whole thing couldn't end good. Not only did she act more like a real girlfriend with each day, but she felt more like a fake friend too. There was no denying it - she was going straight to hell for this. Tikki was right all along.

A liar.

An impostor.

A cheat.

Marinette despised liars, all those people who could bend the truth or make a detour around it to fit their purposes. She hated them with all her heart. Yet now she was one of them, turned into the very thing she loathed so much. And not because she wanted to keep her loved ones safe, oh no, but because it fit her own selfish cause. She was lying not only to everyone around her and to herself. She was lying _to Adrien_. With each day of **fake** dating she only loved him more.

He showed her a new side to him - a more honest, open, goofy side. All the highlights of his personality that she hitherto admired gained a new depth. He let her inside his walls, allowing her to glimpse the reckless, carefree, silly boy he was under the polite facade of the model. And what did she do in return?

She lied.

She lied, because she'd spend every waking hour with him if he'd let her. She lied, because she cared for him so much it hurt. She lied, because now that she knew of the existence of that hidden part of him, she admired him even more. She was amazed at how despite his sheltered upbringing and emotionally detached parent, despite his loss, he was able to keep that warm, sunny side to him.

She should end it, she knew it even without Tikki's disapproving snorts. But she couldn't. Once she got under that spell, she couldn't let go. Somewhere deep down that part of her, which high-fived and whooped every time Marinette came away victorious from another interaction or kept her cool after another peck on the cheek, that part whispered that maybe, just maybe Adrien would start reciprocating her feelings. That maybe this would work for him the way it worked for her.

 _You're delusional_ , the voice of reason chided. _You should back down before you really get hurt_.

Marinette could only whine and clutch at her reeling head, while the internal struggle kept tearing her heart apart.

It was the ringtone that saved her.

' _Marinette?'_ an uncertain voice of her fake boyfriend filled her ear and she realised she hadn't said anything yet.

'I'm here,' she mumbled, relief washing over her that he finally called.

' _Are you okay?'_

'Y-yeah! You?'

' _I'm fine,'_ he replied cheerfully, but she heard the hesitation in his voice.

'What did your father tell you?' Marinette asked the question that'd been nagging at her mind since she left his house. 'Are we in trouble?'

' _He said…'_ Adrien paused and she heard that he started pacing, his steps echoing in the cavern that he called his room. _'We… we didn't talk about you. That was something about the next campaign. Sorry, can't really tell you, you know, company secrets,'_ he laughed.

And now you're lying to me too, Marinette thought bitterly. 'Oh…' she tried to stamp down her disappointment, '... that's good,' she offered.

' _Yeah,'_ he replied and fell silent for a few painful heartbeats. _'Anyway, how are you feeling? You looked so pale when my father came.'_

'I'm fine,' Marinette assured him with far more confidence that she felt. 'Not everyday you get to meet your idol face to face,' she jested. Not everyday you lie to your idol about his son and to your fake boyfriend about meeting his father, she thought.

' _I'm glad. I wanted to check if you need cheering up.'_

'Cheering up is always welcomed,' she chirped. Not to mention she _did_ need it. Badly.

' _Wanna hear something then?'_ she heard that he finally stopped pacing and sat down.

'Sure,' Marinette agreed. She adored his anecdotes and jokes after all.

He didn't reply. There was a series of taps and scrapes instead. She glanced at the screen to check if it was the connection and then she heard the piano, as it started to play.

Soft, quiet, playful tones, only one hand at first. Then the other hand joined and the sounds became more intense, fuller. The music flowed from the speaker right into her soul. It tugged at the strings of her heart. It raised her way above the rooftops and up to the clouds.

Adrien played for her and her only. There was no one else but them at that private concert.

Too soon the melody reached its end. Marinette blinked and only then she felt the wetness on her cheeks.

' _Did you like it?'_ his timid voice replaced the music.

'Yes,' she breathed.

' _Do you want me to play some more?'_

'Please.' She didn't trust her voice enough to say anything else.

Another melody washed over her, pulsing in sync with her heart. Calmer this time, harmonious. And so sad. The piano weeped in her ears. Marinette imagined Adrien's slender fingers brushing the keys, coaxing the music to rise from the wooden case. Her mind filled with moonlight spilling over rooftops and with secrets dwelling in the darkness.

The tender melodies still filled the evening air long after they said their goodbyes. His music echoed in her soul, lulling her to sleep.

 _Oh boy, I'm in so much trouble…,_ she thought, as she finally gave into the slumber.

* * *

 _Author's Note: The first piece Adrien played was Chopin's Nocturne op.9 No.2. The second was Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata._

 _Has any of you noticed something specific about narration in this fic?  
Anyway, tell me what you think of this sob chapter?_

 _A sincere thank you to_ _Rem_ _asa who's a fountain of good ideas and advice._

 _Visit me on perditaalottachocolate-blog . tumblr . com_ _. I post this AdrinetteApril fic there, as well as snippets of my other works and my doodles._ _I also share quite a lot of miraculous stuff._


	7. Modeling

_Author's Note: *Casually bumps the rating to T for the sake of the punchline. 'K, bye*_

* * *

 **Day 7: Modeling**

He woke up early enough to enjoy the red and orange shadows dancing over his walls. Plagg was snoring loudly in his bin and for the first time the sounds of a miniature seesaw didn't bother Adrien. He slept better than in weeks. The little impromptu concert that he gave the day before drained him, but in a good way. He poured all his melancholy and sadness, all his yearning for a friendly soul into his music, all the love he had to give, as he played for Marinette.

It had been an impulse, really. He wanted to cheer her up with a joke when his hand touched the keys and he thought "Why not?". He could hear her breathing on the speakerphone all the time he performed and for a moment he thought she even cried. No one had ever reacted to him playing like that, like she knew what he meant. With each melody he opened his heart and soul more. She took it without complaint, silent compassion filling the space between them.

Gratitude blossomed in his heart again. His friend was truly amazing and he was discovering new things about her every day. He already had known she was creative, energetic and cheerful. He'd learned she was kind and compassionate. He'd seen how brave and level headed she was. Yesterday he discovered she could also be fragile, yet strong. And in the evening she allowed him to witness the quiet and emotional side to her that filled him with inexplicable fondness.

As a friend of course.

He was extremely fond of Marinette and grateful for her recent presence in his life. She was the cause of that warm, bubbly feeling building up in his chest. She was the reason he felt so light headed. Was it… happiness? That must have been it. He hoped she felt similar. Despite his father's warning and the guilt he felt at the thought of lying to people about him dating Marinette, he decided to keep it up just a little bit longer.

Adrien wanted to meet her. But it was Saturday, so no school, and they didn't make any plans because he was expected at a photoshoot at the Parc des Princes for Gabriel's summer sports line. He scratched his chin. Marinette liked fashion, didn't she? Did he just find a way to spend more time with her _and_ do something she'd authentically enjoy?

He smirked already plotting how to get his friend to the set. Who to ask and who to avoid. It was still early, although not for the bakers. He made a quick call and ran to talk to Nathalie.

In half an hour his car was pulling over to Rue Gotlib 12. Monsieur Dupain let him in through the bakery, slipping a bag with something warm and drool-inducing into his hands. With a cheerful smile he sent the boy up to their apartment. Marinette's mother let him inside. She wasn't as cordial as last time, but Adrien remembered that she knew about the fake dating and, similar to his father, she didn't approve.

He tried to explain this wasn't part of their fake relationship, that he wanted to give Marinette a peek into the fashion world she aspired to, but Madame Cheng wouldn't allow him to finish. Adrien cringed inwardly at the sadness and disappointment he read in her eyes, when she went to fetch her daughter.

But all this was forgotten as soon as he laid his eyes on the girl descending down the stairs. Still in her pajamas and with an extreme case of bed pigtails, she froze mid-yawn when she saw him, and his breathing hitched in his throat because _boy_ was she cute.

Marinette squeaked something incoherently and tried to cover herself up, shooting a murderous glare at her mother, who for once looked amused. Unfortunately the motion threw the girl off balance and she tumbled down, hands flailing and eyes wide. As he caught her a single thought passed through his brain that only Marinette could pull off cute and hilarious at the same time.

'You have to promise,' he murmured happily into her ear, noticing the trademark blush dusting her cheeks, 'to leave the modeling to me today, Princ- ' he faltered and he felt her stiffen in his arms, 'I mean _at the Parc_ des Princes,' he corrected himself helping her to her feet.

She shot him with a suspicious look. 'Am I still dreaming?' she finally asked.

'Oh, right,' he rubbed the back of his neck, 'Surprise, my fake girlfriend! Get dressed quickly. We have a Gabriel photoshoot to get to!'

'Pinch me,' she whispered and he knew there was no foundation in the make-up artist's case that would cover the redness of his face when he realized he'd actually really like to.

* * *

 _AN: And we're back on track with fluff! At least for now... 8D_

 _Don't forget to tell me, what you think of this chapter. Next time is party time! Ooooh, I can't wait to show you that chap and the art..._

 _Thank you Rem for helping me with this again!_

 _Visit me on perditaalottachocolate-blog . tumblr . com . I post this AdrinetteApril fic there, as well as snippets of my other works and my doodles (check out the tags "perdita writes" "perdita draws" and "april weather art"). I also share quite a lot of miraculous stuff._


	8. Pool Party

**Day 8. Pool Party**

'A pool party,' Marinette deadpanned. 'In April. Is Chloé out of her mind?'

'It's an indoor pool, M,' Alya giggled. 'Chloé may be crazy, but she wouldn't have her butt frozen in this temperatures.'

Marinette shrugged and scrolled through her phone once more. 'It doesn't really matter,' she chewed the inside of her cheek. 'She hasn't invited me anyway.'

Alya frowned. 'Why would she, girl?' she asked, confused.

'Hah!' Marinette threw her hands in the air. 'Why would anyone want to invite me anywhere,' she sighed dramatically and sunk to the bench next to her fake boyfriend. She felt his hands snake around her waist and pull her closer. It was still a mystery how exactly cuddles entered their fake relationship. Adrien had crossed that border of her personal space a few days ago and she couldn't find it in her to complain or refuse him. Even if her brain still short circuited every time she found herself wrapped in his embrace. It was almost too comfortable.

He put his chin on her shoulder and looked at her from under his golden lashes totally oblivious to what effect he had on her. 'Um, what Alya meant,' her perfect storm of a boy murmured with a sly smirk, 'is that Chloé didn't need to invite you.'

Marinette's heart sped up. Traitor. A little more than two weeks of fake dating and it still did that in his presence. Ignoring the flutter in her chest she set him with a stern look. 'Et tu, Agreste?' she pouted.

Adrien rubbed his cheek into her shoulder. 'Chloé hasn't invited you because you're my plus one,' he burst into laughter.

'I'm- what?' she spluttered, swearing to murder Alya for cackling at her in such a moment.

'Everyone can bring a date. As my girlfriend you're my default date,' he explained with that disarming smile. 'Unless,' his brow furrowed in concern, 'unless you don't want to go?'

'Nooooooo! I'd love to!' Who was she to refuse the opportunity to gawk at her fake boyfriend in swimwear, maybe even shirtless if she was lucky.

Alya shot her an amused look as if she knew exactly what Marinette was thinking. 'Great!' she said. 'Now we gotta think what are we going to wear.'

'Oh,' the cogs in Marinette's brain were already turning at full speed, 'when's the party?'

'Friday,' Adrien supplied helpfully. 'Don't worry, whatever you'll wear, I'm sure you will look cute.'

'Pffft, cute is for amateurs,' she chided and blushed fiercely when her ears caught up with her mouth. 'Charmer,' she giggled and bopped him on the nose. 'Now move, I need to get to my sketchbook.'

'No can do,' he pressed his cheek into her upper arm. 'I can negotiate releasing your right hand to allow you to draw, but I refuse to let go of my Mari-pillow.'

Marinette flushed at that, all the sass she still had evaporating in an instant. Nino and Alya exchanged confused looks. So it wasn't just her who thought Adrien was acting strange lately. Sure, they were in public and therefore "dating", but wasn't this a bit far fetched for a staged relationship?

Suddenly extremely self-conscious she peeled his hands away from her and cautiously slid out of his range.

'Sorry,' she mumbled, 'but I need to go to the bathroom.'

She was relieved to see Adrien seemed totally unperturbed with her maneuver. He beamed at her. 'Sure! Can I-'

'Easy Agreste, you might wanna tone the boyfriending down a notch,' Alya interjected. 'Wait, M. I need to go too,' she caught Marinette's hand and dragged her in the direction of the locker room, leaving a confused Adrien and snickering Nino behind.

'What's up with you two,' the blogger asked, as soon as they were out of the boys' sight. 'He's practically all over you and you don't mind?'

'I… well… it's niiiiice,' Marinette whined and hid her face in her hands. 'Alya, do you think… that maybe Adrien…'

Would she dare voice that thought? What if she jinx it?

'That Adrien might like you more than just a fake girlfriend?' her friend supplied without missing a beat. 'Yeah, we've noticed that too.'

'So it's not me imagining things,' Marinette sighed in relief. The ball of anxiety in her stomach seemed to loosen a bit.

'Has he said anything?' Alya wondered. 'Something happened?'

'Not really, I mean we are getting to know each other better because of all the time we spend together.'

'But he is willingly making the time for you in his schedule,' Alya speculated. 'It's not like you _have to_ spend as much time together because of that fake dating thing.'

'I guess,' Marinette ducked her head. She had to admit all this looked really promising. Maybe she was lucky after all.

'Well then, you need to strike while the iron is still hot,' Alya smirked at her. 'And the pool party is the perfect opportunity to look hot! Any ideas?'

'There's not much time,' Marinette bit the inside of her cheek. 'I might need to shortcut if I want to make a good impression.'

'Good impression?' Alya's brow shot above her glasses. 'Girl, I expect nothing below stunning. And I'm dead serious.' She browsed through her phone. 'Scheduling progress inspection Thursday afternoon. How does that work for you?'

'Fine,' Marinette replied. She looked at the pendant on her friend's phone and the first design unravelled in front of her eyes.

With as little time as she had she had to cheat a bit, and she still worked every evening to finish it on time. That's why she didn't sew a completely new swimsuit, but used garments she already had in her closet. Her red boyshorts got dyed overnight into a familiar pattern. She matched them with a black tank top, that she cut and hemmed just below her breasts. She decided to add green embroidery over the chest opting for two paw prints - not _directly_ at the front, but close enough for a suggestion of something naughty.

When she tried the set on, she knew she chose well. Those little adjustments to the cut made her waist, hips and long legs pop. The tank top smartly drew attention to her chest, despite it being all nicely hidden under the black garment, without really showing anything. Marinette completed the look by tying her pigtails up into high buns, to keep them away from water.

On Thursday Alya rated the final effect as 100% drool inducing, confirming Marinette's assessment. They decided not to show it to her parents before the party, just in case.

When on Friday afternoon they met up at the pool and she finally put it on, she felt empowered, despite the fact that she was actually wearing no more than a few scraps of material. It was like donning the red suit, confidence and satisfaction at the job well done made her almost float with pride.

And when she spotted her fake boyfriend loitering outside the changing rooms, his hips snugly wrapped in blue flowery bermuda trunks, she didn't lose her head. She sauntered to him with the most smug smile she could muster, squealing inwardly at his stunned expression.

His eyes _roamed_ over her figure and she could swear he blushed when they landed on her top.

'What is it, babe?' she purred. 'Cat got your tongue?'

A choking gurgle was the only reply she got.

Yup, totally worth it.

* * *

 _Author's Note:_

 _There is art for this chapter on perditaalottachocolate-blog .tumblr. com if you're curious how Marinette's outfit looked like. You have to look for "april weather art" (fanfiction doesn't allow to link it, but I'll try this way: perditaalottachocolate-blog . tumblr. com [slash] post [slash] 172766675333 [slash] april-weather-8-art )_

 _EDIT: Now there's more art thanks to wonderful caritop-gigi:_ _caritop-gigi . tumblr . com [slash] post [slash] 173393322348 [slash] perditaalottachocolate-blog-me-ha-inspirado-con_

 _And now tell me what do you think? Don't forget to let me know. Your reviews favs and follows are my main motivation to find the time to write on a daily basis._

 _A special thank you to_ _Remasa_ _for her invaluable advice and for beta reading this chapter._

 _Visit me on perditaalottachocolate-blog . tumblr . com . I post this AdrinetteApril fic there, as well as snippets of my other works and my doodles (check out the tags "perdita writes" "perdita draws" and "april weather art")._ _I also share quite a lot of miraculous stuff._


	9. Jealous

**Day 9. Jealous**

Adrien needed a few moments to compose himself. He wasn't blind or ignorant of Marinette's good looks. But he expected cute, not _smoking hot_ , _holy cats are those paw prints on her br..._

He choked on his own tongue, Marinette's sassy tease only making things worse.

Breathe, Agreste. Breathe. It's just a swimsuit, and not particularly revealing at that. Huh. Marinette was a genius, an _evil_ genius. Without showing too much, or anything even remotely suggestive she turned his brain into mush.

Her giggle sobered him up. What a sly, cunning, fake girlfriend he got. Well, two could play this game. His gaze travelled down again, to the red spotted boyshorts and his lips stretched into impish smirk.

'Hey, look at that Lady _bu_ -

Marinette's finger landed on his lips. It took all of his self control _not_ to snatch it and kiss it.

'I swear, Adrien, if you add that double t,' she warned, eyes narrowing to slits. 'I _will_ end you, fake boyfriend or not.'

'That Lady _bug_ pattern _suits_ you,' he finished without missing a beat.

Her laugh was music to his ears. It ended too soon, as they got closer to Chloé who was greeting her guests. She was on speaking terms with him again. It took roughly a week for her to stop sulking and accept the reality of Adrien dating Marinette. It didn't stop her from throwing herself at him at every opportunity though.

'Adrikins!' she shrieked and pulled him into a tight embrace.

He hugged her and quickly withdrew, taking Marinette's hand. He raised a brow and waited.

'Hi, Marinette,' Chloé finally barked, looking the other way.

That. That was exactly why he decided against telling Chloé about the fake dating stunt, even though he told Nino. Just for the way she treated Marinette she deserved not to know. She would be insufferable if he told her.

Marinette murmured something in reply, earning a grunt of acknowledgement from the blonde girl, and they moved deeper into the party area.

Adrien absentmindedly put a hand on Marinette's waist, like he did a countless numbers of times in the past days, when they were in public. It was just an innocent gesture, that hinted intimacy without really showing any affection. Yet this time instead of Marinette's jacket his fingers brushed the bare skin of her side. Soft, delicate, velvet skin. And for a second time that day his neurons were fried.

Marinette tensed under his touch, but apart from that there was no visible reaction. After a moment she sent him a questioning look.

'Sorry,' he whispered apologetically, 'I forgot you're not wearing… I mean you're wearing,' he must have been beet-red by then.

She chuckled under her breath. 'It's okay,' she smiled. 'That's what couples do.' She nodded in the direction of Nino, who was wrapped around Alya's back, his hands crossing over her hips.

'Okay?' Adrien squeezed her side lightly just to make sure and Marinette blinked in silent agreement. She must have had nerves of steel, he thought. At his touch she didn't jump, didn't move away or do anything that might blow up their fake dating ruse.

Still blushing at this new level of closeness, Adrien led her to the pool. They chatted happily, exchanged smiles and pleasantries with other partygoers and generally did everything that Chloé liked to call "mingling".

And everywhere they went Adrien could feel jealous looks on them. He caught a few of the boys gawking at Marinette's swimsuit only to move their gaze to him, showing so much hostility he couldn't help but cringe. Thanks to his enhanced hearing he could also pick up envious whispers from the girls; gossip about "Marinette the gold digger". Nothing new really, but it still stung. Adrien noted with relief that his friend probably couldn't her them - not with that wide and relaxed smile.

A few people dared to come to them and compliment on the ladynoir outfit, as it was dubbed. Marinette thanked each person gracefully, while Adrien did his best to suppress a hiss each time someone checked her out so openly under the pretense of admiring her clothes. Marinette was much more than just a nice set of legs and boo- _Easy Agreste._ Marinette was so much more than just a nice _body_ , like those shallow idiots seemed to think.

Kagami came to say hello. She also congratulated Marinette on her newest design. And then she started on how special Marinette was, and how many great things she heard about her from her classmates and from _Adrien_. He scratched his head. Was this Kagami's attempt at wingwomaning or at flirting, he couldn't tell.

But he thought about this all for a moment, his gaze drifting to the ladybug boyshorts. The shower of compliments about Marinette made him realise how much more he already knew about her, and his admiration for her only continued to grow. Kagami said a few days earlier that he had found a good replacement for Ladybug. But it only worked because Marinette was so damn similar to the spotted heroine, and not with her looks but also with her personality.

'Adrien?'

'Huh?' Apparently he missed a part of conversation, because now both girls where looking at him with amusement. 'Sorry, I spaced out for a moment.'

'Sure you did,' Kagami muttered. Her eyes skipped to the boyshorts meaningfully before she winked at him.

'What was it you were saying?' Adrien decided to ignore her.

'Could you bring us something to drink?' Marinette smiled gently. 'Orange juice would be nice.'

'Yeah, sure,' he looked around in search of the buffet. 'Be right back.'

As he headed for the bar, envious whispers followed. He ran into a few people from Chloé's circle, which delayed his return. When he got back with the drinks Marinette already left the deck chairs. His eyes scanned the crowds in search of his fake girlfriend, but he couldn't see her anywhere.

'Hey!' Finally a familiar voice caught his attention.

'Ma-ma-marinette!' someone gasped and he heard Marinette's giggle in reply.

Adrien spotted her nearby. She was showing her costume to Luka, turning around slowly like a music box figurine. Luka's eyes skipped over her exposed body appreciatively and he murmured a few words of praise to which she playfully hit him over the shoulder. She was touching him, he was looking at her, and Adrien was beside himself.

He felt a heavy hand on his own shoulder.

'You okay, dude?' Nino shot him a worried look above his glasses.

'Yes, why?'

'You don't normally growl at me,' his friend snickered. His gaze travelled to Marinette and Luka. 'Oh.'

'What is he even doing here? Chloé doesn't know him!'

'He's Juleka's plus one,' Nino chuckled shooting Adrien a lopsided grin. 'Jealous much?' he teased.

'Don't be ridiculous,' Adrien rebuked. 'You know we're only pretending.'

'Uh-huh,' Nino pursed his lips.

'What?'

'Nuffin,' the boy shrugged. 'I'm gonna go and look for my _real_ girlfriend. You might want to watch out for Nath and Jean. I've heard them asking her for a dance with them later.'

His heart sped up and his mouth went dry.

Where was all this coming from? They were staging this relationship for fake's sake! He knew how great Marinette was, he knew people liked her. Why was it bothering him so much and making his head spin so fast?

Adrien turned away and took a deep calming breath. He would sort this out, he would get to the bottom of this. Just… not now. Now he needed to finally get to Marinette and just… just be near her, take her hand, or bump into her shoulder, or… or… just make _any_ kind of contact. Just feel her soothing presence.

When he felt ready to face people again Adrien turned around…

… and looked straight into the glowing orbs of the Green-Eyed Monster.

* * *

 _Author's Note: Wooohooo! Akuma time!_

 _Thank you for all your reviews, favs and follows. I am extremely happy you like this story! Please let me know, what you think of Jealousdrien?_

 _Once again thank you Rem for beta reading!_

 _Visit me on perditaalottachocolate-blog . tumblr . com . I post this AdrinetteApril fic there, as well as snippets of my other works and my doodles (check out the tags "perdita writes" "perdita draws" and "april weather art"). I also share quite a lot of miraculous stuff._


	10. Holding Hands

**Day 10. Holding Hands**

 _Of course_ there would be an akuma crashing _Chloé's_ party. How could Marinette even think otherwise? The heiress of the Bourgeois fortune was probably as close to Hawkmoth's henchwoman as a civilian might be. Now a bear-sized beast with hypnotic emerald eyes was rampaging through the pool and covering everyone in green goo.

She sent Luka to help other people onto evacuation routes. Escaping his protective grasp was more difficult than last time, but finally she was alone and only a hideout away from becoming Ladybug. She congratulated herself on her foresight to keep her pink purse with her. This way she didn't have to lose precious minutes to get to Tikki. Finally she reached the changing rooms and after checking if they're empty, she called on her transformation.

When she burst through the door to the main pool her heart stopped. For there was Adrien standing in front of the beast, waving a pole at it. Why didn't he leave with the rest of the people? She thought she got everyone out.

Ladybug swung her yoyo and set to the rescue. A few benches served as a distraction, discarded ropes as a makeshift trap. It wouldn't hold for long, not against a magical monster, but it was enough to get to Adrien. Soon they were safely hidden behind a row of lockers.

The boy looked around the changing room, and then risked a peek at the main pool. He was clearly worried.

'Ladybug, have you seen Marinette?' he panted.

'M-marinette?' She stuttered cursing herself for not staying professional. Was he looking for _her?_

'Why?' she winced when she realised she asked the last thing out loud, but now that she did, she was anxious to hear his answer.

'She's my,' he hesitated and her heart skipped a few beats. Their fake relationship status _was_ official. Would he say it? Would she hear it from him that Marinette was his girlfriend?

'She's my friend. I'm worried about her,' he finished not meeting her gaze.

Ladybug did her best to hide the disappointment thankful for the red mask. 'Right, right, I-...' She swallowed the lump in her throat. 'I'm sure she got out with the rest of your group. You need to-'

There was a crash somewhere nearby and the corridor leading outside collapsed, burying them in a cloud of dust.

'Too late,' she muttered. 'Plan B.'

She caught her oblivious fake boyfriend's hand and dragged him to the maintenance area. His touch burned her even through her suit.

'Stay here and keep your head down, please,' she instructed shoving him into the first room she could find. 'The warning was issued a few minutes ago. I'm sure Chat's on his way. We'll end this quickly, I promise.'

She didn't wait for his reply even though she saw he was already opening his mouth. She wasn't sure she would be able to take it.

'Akuma, fight, Chat,' she muttered, cautiously making her way back to the pool.

Her partner arrived soon afterwards. And if she wasn't so focused on stamping down her own dejection, she would probably realize sooner that he wasn't really himself. Half the sass, double the frown. Plus he was constantly checking every corner of the pool, despite her constant assurance that everyone got out.

He didn't even stay for the customary fist-bump, but with a mumbled goodbye he ran for the door. Ladybug waited for a moment before slipping away to the bathrooms to drop her transformation. Marinette managed to crawl outside through the high bathroom window, and joined the rest of the people as they got back to the pool.

She heard him before she saw his blond thatch wading through the crowd.

'Marinette? Have you seen Marinette?' Adrien's voice was frantic, panicky. His earlier words still stung, but here he was, looking for her, worried more than she'd ever seen him. It was making her insides churn.

When his eyes finally found hers the relief that washed over him stunned her into silence. His features relaxed. A gasp escaped his lips. And he all but crashed into her, pulling her flush against him.

Marinette's skin covered in goosebumps at the contact - they were still in their swimsuits after all, but Adrien took no notice of the sensation. He only wrapped his arms tighter around her.

'Thank god' he whispered into her hair. 'I was so worried when I couldn't find you,' he babbled, not even expecting a reply.

She started rubbing soothing circles over his back, trying to ignore the fact that it was his bare skin under her fingertips. He was always very physical and now apparently he needed this kind of comfort.

'Thank god,' he repeated one last time and finally detached himself from her. He took her hand instead. 'Let's go back.'

'Okay,' she breathed, still a bit overwhelmed with this welcome. Her gaze skipped to their entwined fingers. When they went inside, it took more than an hour for Adrien to let go of her hand even for a second.

* * *

 _Author's Note: Alterating POVs is getting more and more difficult, ugh..._

 _Anyway, I appreciate your comments greatly! Let me know, what you think of my take at holding hands._

 _A bow to Remasa, thank you for your support and great ideas! I strongly recommend you check out her miraculous stories!_

 _Visit me on perditaalottachocolate-blog . tumblr. com . I post this AdrinetteApril fic there, as well as snippets of my other works and my doodles (check out the tags "perdita writes" "perdita draws" and "april weather art")._ _I also share quite a lot of miraculous stuff._


	11. Slow Dance

_Author's Note: So... there is this song... they're going to be dancing to... and it's Jason Mraz's "Can't hold out on love"._

 _I think it would add a lot to the experience if you'd listen to it while reading. I tried to put the lyrics where I think they would fit in time._

 _Now let's dance with Adrien's POV!_

* * *

 **Day 11. Slow Dance**

Adrien was sure he would not be able to let go of Marinette's hand for the next few hours. When she'd gone out of his sight during the akuma's attack he just lost it. And he had no idea _why_. He hadn't seen Marinette among the people leaving the premise and before he knew the akuma was after him so he couldn't transform. The panic gripped him and only his superhero experience helped him to hold back the beast until Ladybug arrived.

And then instead of the relief he expected, disorientation came. His heart raced and he didn't know if it was out of worry for Marinette's safety, out of the residual jealousy at every male and a few female participants of the party, or out of his affection towards Ladybug.

When she asked about Marinette he had the g-word at the tip of his tongue. He was startled with how easy it came to him to think of her as his girlfriend.

But he couldn't lie to Ladybug, in case he would ever get a chance with her. He just couldn't outright lie that Marinette was his girlfriend when she wasn't.

Ignoring Plagg's cackle after being unceremoniously shoved into another maintenance closet, he transformed and ran back, looking around just in case his friend somehow stayed behind. Chat and Ladybug worked as the well oiled machine they had gotten to be, but his heart wasn't in it. Why was it so difficult to _focus_?

Only when he was already outside he realized he forgot to fistbump with his partner. He scanned the crowds outside but even with his enhanced senses he couldn't find Marinette anywhere and the panic returned in double.

Adrien rushed back inside. Maybe something happened before the akuma, maybe she needed help? People started pouring back into the leisure area and there was still no sign of his friend. The relief he felt when he finally found her was incomparable to anything he'd hitherto experienced. Maybe the T-rex came close, but that was over a superhero, who could protect herself, not over a civilian.

That's why he hadn't left Marinette's side for the better part of the last hour, when the party got started again. He kept close, her hand tightly in his. She didn't seem to mind but she looked somewhat downhearted. Adrien wondered if that was because of the akuma, or maybe some of the gossip finally got to her. He decided to push his own unease to the side. His friend clearly needed cheering up.

'Wanna dance?' he asked.

'We don't have to,' Marinette mumbled in reply, shaking her head.

'No one says we have to,' Adrien smiled. 'You're such a great dancer. I'd love to dance with you. Do you want to?'

She looked at him in silence, for a very long moment, as if she was searching for something. His smile broadened at the attention. He quirked a brow.

'See something you like, Princess?' he purred.

Marinette tensed in an instant, her eyes snapping to his.

 _Merde_. This is what you get when you feel too comfortable around someone, Agreste. Think!

'Is something wrong with "Princess"?' he decided to go for - ha-ha - Prince Charming. 'I thought it would be cute to have a nickname for my fake girlfriend,' he winked, but Marinette just kept glaring at him.

'So, can I-'

'Someone else called me "Princess" some time ago,' she interjected.

 _Merde_. Think faster!

'So?' he shrugged. 'No one has exclusive rights to pet names and royal titles. I can call you any way I please as long as you're okay with that,' he argued. 'My Princess,' he took her hand. 'My Dutchess,' he pulled her in the direction of the dance floor. 'My Queen,' he winked at her again. 'My La-aaa-'

 _Damn it, Agreste. What the hell is wrong with you today?!_

'-aaaand how about that dance, hmm?' he sputtered.

Marinette didn't looked convinced, but she nodded and followed him to where other couples were already dancing.

Adrien caught Nino's eye and his friend shot him a finger gun from behind the DJ console. What was that supposed to mean?

It turned out, it meant that exactly as him and Marinette set their feet on the dance floor, the music melted into a slow song. Well, he thought, Marinette was okay with slow dancing way before they were fake dating. Retreating at this moment would look weird. Besides, Adrien would be lying if he'd say he didn't want to cuddle with her while swaying softly to a slow rhythm.

'' _Some dreams they turn out unfamiliar_

 _Some days are riddled with regret_

 _And even when you think it's over_

 _You ain't seen nothin' yet''_

Marinette stood in front of him, fidgeting awkwardly. He reached for her hands, but instead of taking the dance stance, he put them both around his neck. She locked her eyes with his, but didn't protest. After a few moments he felt her fingers gently brushing the nape of his neck and he melted under her touch.

His hands rested on her covered hips, fingertips caressing her sides.

'Is this okay?' he murmured and she nodded, resting her head on his shoulder. He could smell her shampoo and the sugary scent of the bakery in her hair.

" _No we can't hold out on love_

 _No we can't hold out on love_

 _Because it's up to us to make sure there's enough_

 _We can't hold out on love"_

As the melody gained momentum he slipped into his personal bubble of bliss. Marinette radiated with a cosy warmth that poured into his limbs. She was so soft and smelled divine. Adrien felt as if all of his troubles evaporated. He knew they didn't - they were still there, lurking, waiting to grab him. But all that existed for him now was Marinette, right here, in his arms, their bodies swaying and turning slowly to the soft beats of percussion.

" _Some nights it feels my bones are empty_

 _Some things are too hard to explain_

 _Sometimes I look at you with envy_

 _And then I see we're both the same"_

The backbeat picked up and his heart followed. Marinette's closeness was quickly making him lightheaded. This was more than he could possibly wish for, but something was still missing. He wanted to look into her eyes, to see if she felt as happy as him.

'Marinette?'

She hummed in reply, but didn't change her position.

'Marinette, look at me, please?'

Now she complied, raising her head. When her eyes met his, he couldn't help but to gasp at the hundreds of glimmers reflected in them. She looked so vulnerable, so anxious. Where was that ease they had just a few hours ago before?

" _So we can't hold out on love_

 _No we can't hold out on love_

 _Because it's up to us to make sure there's enough_

 _We can't hold out on love_

 _No we can't hold out on love"_

Adrien wanted to get it all back, to assure her that she was safe, that he would do anything to make her happy. The recurring crescendo gave him wings, he believed he could do anything at that moment. And then his gaze traveled to her slightly parted lips and a need overwhelmed him, a desire to kiss them, to see if they were as soft as the skin at her sides, that he kept brushing with his fingers.

A thrill ran through him at the thought. He couldn't avert his eyes from her lips, the pull was too much to bear. Why was he so drawn to her? Did she know she had him completely under her spell?

She lowered her head, so that he couldn't see her face anymore.

" _All we want, all we need_

 _Is inside you and me_

 _We're all alike, all the while_

 _Everybody breathes"_

'Marinette,' he rasped, hoping she would look at him again. He put a thumb under her chin, coaxing her to come out of hiding.

She did, the endless blue of her eyes searching, questioning, hesitant. He licked his lips. His heart was beating at a thousand kilometers per hour. He briefly wondered if she could hear it too.

" _All because all the love_

 _Echoes in the beating of our hearts_

'Marinette,' he repeated leaning in, 'can I…'

 _Let's get started"_

THUMP!

Marinette's purse landed on the floor with a far heavier thud than it should, considering its size. The contents spilled onto the ground.

" _You can't hold out on love_

 _No we can't hold out on love (Let's get started)"_

Without thinking he bowed down to pick them and collided with Marinette's head, as she had the same idea.

'Sorry!' they both mumbled.

'Allow me!' Adrien asked, already crouching.

" _Because it's up to us to make sure there's enough_

 _We can't hold out on love"_

And then he froze, wondering how hard did he bang his head. Because on the floor, next to Marinette's phone, lay his Lucky Charm Bracelet. His _Marinette's Lucky Charm_ that went missing three weeks ago.

Huh?

* * *

 _AN: This was a funny chapter to write. I hope you liked it! I'd love to know what you think._

 _A friendly wave to Rem, who has a lot of patience for my daily prompt production, but somehow manages to beta read it. Thank you!_

 _Visit me on perditaalottachocolate-blog . tumblr . com . I post this AdrinetteApril fic there, as well as snippets of my other works and my doodles (check out the tags "perdita writes" "perdita draws" and "april weather art"). I also share quite a lot of miraculous stuff._


	12. Lucky Charm

_Author's Note: Thank you so much for all your lovely reviews, favs and follows. I am very happy you like this story so much._

 _In other news: I got sick. May this be karma getting back at me for messing with the love square? Maybe. But my throat and my head are trying to kill me, so I can't guarantee daily updates if this trend continues. I also might reply to your reviews with a delay, sorry in advance, but I promise I will reply to all of them!_

 _Enjoy the next chapter while you can..._

* * *

 **Day 12. Lucky Charm**

Would the equilibrium of the universe suffer if someone would have the demigod of creation murdered? Marinette was really close to putting that theory to the test. Because there was no one else who could access the secret compartment in her desk drawer and take the bracelet out of there. She was just waiting for the right moment to give it back to Adrien. And she sewed the strap of her purse herself, knowing how crucial it was to have her kwami with her at all times. There was no way in hell it would break by itself and in _such an important moment_ nonetheless _._

Talk about mood killer. Ouch.

Adrien picked the contents of the purse and led her away from the dance floor. In a better light he was now inspecting the bracelet with a dumbfounded expression.

'It's not a new one,' he pointed out after a while. 'This is the one I lost.'

Marinette nodded. Her thoughts raced with the speed of a gale. Why this? Why _now_ of all times? She was just getting her hope back that he was interested after all. Somewhere at the back of her head her self respect was ranting about being friendzoned _again_ , but she did her best to ignore it in favor of getting some smooches. Ugh! They would be kissing now. She would finally know the taste of those cherry lips Andre had advertised. She would be one step closer to the three cute babies and a hamster, but nooooo, the mean meddlesome annoying red bug just _had to_ interfere. And not "just" interfere, but drop her in the middle of a minefield. No chocolate-chip cookies for a month, she decreed.

'Y-yeah,' her voice trembled.

Adrien bit his lip. His gorgeous cherry lip, that she was hoping _she_ would get to bite. Not necessarily today! One day! And somewhere in private, where they would be perfecting the art of snogging together. Damn you, Tikki!

'How?'

'How what?' she asked uncertain of what he meant.

'How do you have it? I lost it that day when my bodyguard was akumatized.'

'Ai… uh…' Marinette squirmed and wriggled. For heaven's sake, think girl! You can't tell him you picked it up when the Miraculous Cure fixed it, because you were-

'Ladybug!' she exclaimed.

Adrien started and looked over his shoulder as if expecting to find the heroine behind him.

'No! Not here!' Marinette flailed. 'I mean Ladybug gave it to me!'

He cast her a dubious look. 'Why would she? This is my bracelet.'

'Ah-uh, yes, yes, but you seeeeee… she didn't know it's yours,' she wrung her fingers up to the point it hurt.

'Well, okay,' he reluctantly agreed, 'but why did she give it to you?'

'Ah, see, I always sign my, um, creations,' Marinette mumbled pursing her lips. 'Like with the derby hat, remember?'

Adrien nodded, not taking his eyes off the bracelet.

'Can I?' Marinette gestured to the beads. 'I'll show you.'

She turned the large pink bead around until she found the engraving. 'Look here,' she tapped her finger to the curly letters. 'It's very subtle, because the bead was really hard and I couldn't move deeper.'

 _** Marinette **_

The cursive was barely visible, especially since the bead was a little worn-out already. But it still was recognizable.

'Wow,' Adrien ran his fingertip over the letters. 'How did I not notice that?' he laughed. 'I must have spent hours looking at it!'

'Hours?' Marinette's heart sped up.

'Yeah!' he replied enthusiastically, pocketing the charm. 'When I was making the one for you, I studied yours. I wanted to give you something as close to this as I could.'

Marinette blushed. 'That's… thank you.'

'Thank _you_! For returning this to me!' He beamed at her. 'So…,' he ducked his head and looked at her hopefully, 'do you want to go back to dancing?'

'I… ow!' Marinette felt a painful pinch and poke on her waist, where she tied the purse using what was left of the strap. What on earth now!? 'I'd lik-, owww!' she hissed at another pinch.

'I need to go home, I think,' she gave up. And talk to some sprites about their pesky behavior.

'I don't feel very well,' she admitted as a way of explanation. Especially not when someone was poking and pinching her.

'Oh,' Adrien deflated. 'Well, it is getting late. Can I walk you home maybe?'

Poke, pinch, poke.

That's settled then, Marinette thought, rubbing her side. She was going to commit kwamicide as soon as she returns home.

'No-ow! Thanks!' She squirmed to get the purse away from her body. 'Papa promised to pick me up. I just need to text-'

'Marinette, your father is here!' Sabrina called from the door.

'Oh, seems like I already texted him earlier and forgot about it,' Marinette said gravely, still keeping the purse in the air. 'Well, thank you for… an interesting evening!' she added, pecking him lightly on the cheek. 'See you tomorrow on the group project!'

'See you, Marinette,' he replied with a smile. He looked like he wanted to add something, but her purse decided to head for the changing rooms dragging her behind.

* * *

'Why did you do that?!' Marinette huffed, as soon as the trapdoor to her room closed behind them. She didn't remember a time she was more crossed with anyone bar maybe Chloé.

Tikki flew out of Marinette's kwamitaged purse and headed straight for the cookie stash. 'Because you'd regret it,' she said over her shoulder.

'Regret kissing Adrien?' the girl groaned. 'Are you crazy?'

The kwami turned to her. 'You'd regret it, Marinette,' she stated solemnly before taking a bite out of a cookie as big as her head.

'No way!' Marinette pouted. 'I would wake up happy because I kissed Adrien!'

Tikki flew closer. She watched the girl and chewed, as if thinking something over.

'You'd really like that?' the red sprite finally asked, not taking her eyes from her Chosen. 'And what if he would think of it as a mistake by tomorrow?'

Marinette's eyes widened at the supposition and she winced. That thought had actually crossed her mind.

'He was shaken after that akuma, worried sick about you,' Tikki continued. 'The music and the dance did the rest but…' she hesitated. '...I hate to spell it out like that, but he's _not_ your boyfriend, Marinette. You heard what he said to Ladybug - you're a friend to him.'

'Yeah…,' the girl sunk to the sofa. 'I heard,' she sighed. 'But-'

'No buts!' Tikki waved her tiny paw in front of Marinette's face. 'If you want to have something good with Adrien you need to clear some things first.'

'Yeah…' Marinette mumbled, dropping her gaze to the floor.

'Starting with the fake dating!' the kwami added. 'You cannot build a relationship based on a lie.'

'I knooooow,' the girl whined. 'But you could have let me have that one kiss.'

'Nope,' Tikki shook her head and narrowed her eyes. 'You need to tell him how you feel and you need to know what he wants,' she lectured.

'I would go out on a limb and say he wanted to kiss me,' Marinette muttered under her breath.

'Sure,' Tikki rolled her eyes. 'Because you're such a _good friend_!' she scoffed and flew away, not paying Marinette another glance.

* * *

 _AN: So... that was some Lucky Charm, huh? What do you say?_

 _A bow to Remasa, thank you for your support and great ideas! I strongly recommend you check out her miraculous stories!_

 _Visit me on perditaalottachocolate-blog . tumblr . com . I post this AdrinetteApril fic there, as well as snippets of my other works and my doodles (check out the tags "perdita writes" "perdita draws" and "april weather art"). I also share quite a lot of miraculous stuff._


	13. Group Project

_Author's Note: I'm sorry. I had to._

* * *

 **Day 13. Group Project**

'Why didn't you wake me?' Adrien panted, running into schoolyard. He was so, so late to their group project meeting. Everyone else was probably already in class and working.

'What am I, an alarm clock?' his pocket rebuked. 'You should have slept like a normal person, instead of panicking over almost kissing your girlfriend half of the night.'

'Oh yeah?' the boy slowed down a bit. 'Well, she is _not_ my girlfriend!'

'Ouch, you got me,' the pocket snickered. 'Besides, she likes you, you like her. As far as I'm concerned this is a mere formality.'

Adrien stopped dead in his tracks two steps from the class door.

'You really think she likes me?'

Plagg stuck his head out of Adrien's shirt. 'Oh, for the love of brie! Are you seriously asking me that after those three weeks?'

Adrien was halfway to a dopey smile when a thought hit him with the force of a freight train. All blood drained from his face.

'But… I… Ladybug...?' he mumbled.

'Ladybug what?' Plagg already hid back between the fabrics.

The boy desperately clutched at his hair. 'Ooooooh, I am the worst, despicable, awful person, Plagg!' he moaned.

'You are?'

'I am,' Adrien confirmed solemnly. 'I love Ladybug, but…' his voice dropped to mortified whisper, 'I also want Marinette.'

Plagg opened his mouth to say something, but at that moment Adrien was grabbed by the collar and pulled into the classroom.

He blinked at the brown eyes hidden behind glasses, that were definitely too close to his face for comfort.

'Tell me what you know!' Alya growled at him.

'Wha-?' he squeaked.

'Babe, let him go,' that was Nino's voice somewhere behind the bespectacled fury. 'He just overslept.'

Adrien was released from the clutches of the crazed Ladyblogger, but she still scowled at him. 'You didn't see the akuma?'

His eyes widened in panic. 'There's an akuma?'

'Was,' the girl replied gravely. 'And I got stuck in here with Monsieur Overprotective Boyfriend,' she shot Nino a murderous glare.

'You wouldn't have gotten there on time anyway,' the boy countered. 'The notice came just before it was all over.'

'So it's already over?' Adrien wasn't sure if he should feel relieved that it was, or ashamed that he slept through it.

'Yup, it was a quick one, but in another part of the city,' Nino supplied. 'Otherwise you'd have been awoken by the noise. It was something really loud and alarm clock themed.'

Adrien winced, ignoring the quiet chuckling in his pocket. He cast a quick look over the classroom. Most of his classmates were already there, just not the one he wanted to see the most. 'Marinette's not here yet?'

Panic reared her ugly head again. Could Marinette get caught up in the attack? Was she all right?

Alya snorted inelegantly. 'Relax, sunshine. That girl oversleeps like a pro on a regular day. After last night I don't expect her here for another half an hour.'

'Which is actually very convenient,' Nino interjected lowering his voice to a whisper, 'because before she joins us I think we need to have-'

'A war council!' Alya growled eyeing Chloé.

Now Adrien noticed what he missed earlier - that most of people in class were reading newspapers and simultaneously scrolling through their phones or tablets, which in itself was a rare occurrence. Seeing his eyes on her, Chloé raised hers with a content smile. He glanced at the title and then skipped to a few others that he could see.

Suddenly he was out of air, and his knees buckled in warning. The words seemed to scream at him from various headlines in shades of red, black and yellow with a serious overuse of poor old exclamation mark.

LEAKED PICTURES!

SCANDALOUS!

AGRESTE!

HALF-NAKED!

GIRLFRIEND!

He came closer to Kim, who was browsing something on his tablet. It was a collection of grainy photos, undoubtedly from last night at the pool, posted on instagram or some other platform. Poor in quality due to bad lighting, clearly taken with phone cameras from some distance. But all this wasn't important. What was important was that on each of them behind the people "posing" for the picture, there was always him and Marinette in the background, only in their swimwear, sharing moments that he hoped would never be anyone's business.

They almost kissed at that party, and the few shots of him leaning in were dubbed "A STEAMY MAKE-OUT SESSION!"

He hugged her after the akuma attack, and it was more than enough for "A MODEL SNOG!"

A few of their innocent touches earned a "FEEL ME UP AGRESTE!"

And so on, and so on.

'W-what is that?' he asked, his voice trembling.

'This?' Chloé waved her own tablet in front of him as if he could somehow miss it. 'You like our little group project?'

'Group project?' Adrien echoed, totally at a loss.

'Just a few people from the party who agree with me that Marinette doesn't deserve you.'

'You did that?' he couldn't believe his ears.

'Someone had to,' the girl shrugged. 'Maybe this will open your eyes. This is not the girl for you, Adrikins.'

'You deliberately gave those pictures to the gossip rags together with my name?'

'Ah, you'll thank me later,' Chloé smiled sweetly, 'You know it doesn't really matter what they say about you as long as they spell your name right. And I've made sure they did.'

Adrien had no idea what he would have done if it wasn't for Nino's hand on his shoulder and the pats of tiny paws on his chest, but he had the word _cataclysm_ at the tip of his tongue. He closed his eyes to reign the tornado of thoughts currently storming through his head. He wouldn't even know where to begin talking so he took a deep breath and turned around.

'Adrien?' Nino asked but he just waved a hand.

'I need to get out. Now,' he said quietly, not sure how much longer he would be able to keep the lid on his rage and despair.

His friend nodded. 'If you need me-'

'Not now. Thank you,' Adrien replied and left.

He ran down to the bank hoping for a place to calm down his galloping thoughts and his racing heart. Feeling utterly helpless and weak he dropped onto a bench only to notice a large advertising screen right in front of him, on the other side of the river. It had an ad from one of the tabloids that published the article about him on a loop.

Adrien groaned and hid his head in his hands. He missed the good times when he had only his smiley face plastered everywhere next to a perfume bottle. What mess had he gotten Marinette into? How would he look into her eyes now? And her parents? Oh god, his father? How had this happened?

'Hey, it's Adrien, right?' he heard a female voice next to him.

'I know, you've seen my name right there,' he growled still hiding behind his hands, 'but please, just leave me alone.'

'You look like you need company,' the voice didn't give up.

'I said, _please,_ ' he repeated raising his head, 'leave me alo-'

Ladybug.

She was standing in front of him. A compassionate smile adorned her lovely face. She frowned when she saw his. In any other circumstances he would thank the heavens for her presence but not now. Not when he was a mess, unable to sort out his own feelings towards two different girls. When he had caused chaos beyond words to one of them jeopardizing not only a potential relationship but also the existing friendship. When he was lost and didn't know what to do.

Ladybug sat on the other end of the bench. He honestly didn't have enough strength to say she wasn't helping. She only made him more confused, just by sitting there. By reminding him of his failure to stay faithful to her. Now he could wallow in even more regrets. Thanks, partner.

'So she's more than your friend after all,' the heroine whispered, taking in the screen.

If _this_ was her way of comforting him, he thought bitterly, then he finally found the first thing she sucked at.

'Please, just-'

She scooted a bit closer. 'Do those pictures bother you more than last time?'

'Yes.'

'Why?'

'Because it was my stupid idea and I dragged her into it,' he snapped. 'She must hate me now.'

Oh, god. He thought about Marinette facing Chloé after being shown those pictures and the headlines. He hoped Alya and Nino would be there for her. He couldn't. Not right now. He wasn't sure what he was capable of doing with that anger and shame burning inside of him.

Ladybug bit her lip. 'I'm sure she doesn't hate you,' she murmured after a while.

'I'm sure she does,' he snorted, throwing all pretense to the wind. He was too deep in his sinkhole to care what she thought of him at this moment.

'Are you such a bad boyfriend that your girlfriend hates you?'

It must have been her attempt at lightening the mood, but it still sucked.

'I am,' he groaned, pressing his hands to his face again. 'She's just a friend, we were faking it,' he droned in exasperation. Why wouldn't she just leave him alone?

'Oh,' she gasped. 'Then you were... very convincing.'

Adrien felt the tears coming up to his eyes. He swallowed the lump in his throat. 'It was all a ruse,' he started, 'but now I-

'So you didn't lie to me yesterday,' she hummed, as if detached from this forced conversation. 'When everyone else was told a lie.'

'I didn't want to lie to you,' he admitted, not sure where all this was coming from. 'Ladybug, I-'

'I need to go,' she sprang to her feet, suddenly going ash-pale. She turned away from him. 'Heroes business. I'm sure I'll see you around,' she added sourly, throwing her yoyo and disappearing in the distance.

Yeah, Adrien thought about the ads again, that was a given.

He sat by the bank for some time, to finally collect his belongings and head back to the street. He texted his bodyguard to pick him up. Facing anyone would be too much. Facing Marinette would be unbearable. Maybe that made him a coward, she definitely didn't deserve any of this. But he felt he needed to sort out his feelings first, offer her solutions not more problems or indecision. He needed to gather his thoughts, maybe talk to his father. Right now, he was a disaster on two legs.

He stood on the pavement waiting for his ride when he felt someone tapping him over the shoulder.

'Adrien?' he heard Marinette's small voice.

He turned around. She not only looked sadder but also smaller. Her pale face was twisted in a foul smile and she was avoiding his gaze. He didn't need to ask if she knew what happened.

Then her eyes finally snapped to his and he jolted under the seriousness and determination he saw there.

'We need to talk,' she said.

* * *

 _AN: Let me know, what you think of this update. Your reviews, favs and follows mean the world to me! Thank you for your support._

 _So apparently in France tabloids can't print out pictures like those mentioned here by law because this is a violation of privacy. That's why the papers only described what was in the pictures posted on-line by a third party. A huge thank you to Sinfulpapillon for pointing this out to me._

 _I am deeply sorry for using Chloé as a plot device. I am sure she wouldn't do that, especially after Zombizou, but someone needed to do that and it was easier to blame it on her than introduce another character who would also enrage Adrien. Let's say this is pre Zombizou, okay?_

 _As usual, a huge thank you to Remasa for her invaluable advice and brainstorming headlines!_

 _Visit me on perditaalottachocolate-blog . tumblr . com. I post this AdrinetteApril fic there, as well as snippets of my other works and my doodles. I also share quite a lot of miraculous stuff._


	14. Confess

**Day 14. Confess**

It was a bad idea. Bad, bad idea. What'd got into her to go to him as Ladybug?

Well, in her defence, she was transformed and he looked like he needed someone ASAP. Marinette had seen people akumatized over much less than a full-on media crisis. If only she could predict he would serve her the cardiological equivalent of sucker punch then maybe she'd decide differently.

Or maybe not. That conversation on the river bank was a kind of an eye opener. A long overdue eye opener. She should have listened to Tikki and to her self respect. But she got so caught up in this whole fake dating that she missed all the signs. Maybe she just saw what she wanted to see and ignored everything else?

She had been delusional after all, she admitted. It's high time to end it. Rip it off quickly like a bandaid. A pretty big one, which would tear a huge chunk of her heart too, but she just couldn't keep doing this to herself.

'Adrien, we need to talk,' she said before she could change her mind.

There was so much pain and fear in his eyes that it broke her heart again.

'Marinette, I am so so sorry about the pictures,' he dropped his gaze to the ground.

'I don't care about the pictures,' she assured him. She would never care about such a thing and it certainly wasn't his fault. 'This is about something different.'

He bit his lip and nodded.

Marinette brushed a stray lock of hair behind her ear. Where the hell was Ladybug's courage when she needed it most?

'I- I thought this could work,' she gestured between them, 'that this fake dating would be fun. And it was! But-' she took a deep breath, 'I wasn't honest with you.'

His eyes snapped to her in surprise. Oh god, he was going to hate her, wasn't he? For lying for so long.

'I… I like you, Adrien.' There. She said it. Well, most of it.

He perked up a bit. 'I like you too, Marinette!'

'Not- not like that,' she squeezed her eyes shut, trying to keep the tears from spilling down her cheeks. Why was this so hard? 'More like... _love_ -you like-you,' she mumbled.

She heard him gasp, but she stuck out her hand to stop him in case he'd interfere. She would never say what she wanted. It was now or never.

'But I didn't agree because of that!' she assured. 'I swear! I only wanted to help but then you started acting as if you cared more, as if you'd see me as more than just a friend and I hoped that maybe…' her voice started to tremble. She felt the moist on her cheeks. She ducked her head so that he wouldn't see the tears. Not yet.

'Then you said I was a friend, so I decided to back down. But _then_ there were all those cuddles, and touches, and…' she sighed, 'and mixed signals, that I read the way I wanted, because I hoped-,' she sniffed, 'I'm sorry, I- I thought I could separate my feelings, so you could have a bit of fun, but… I just can't keep doing this with you. It's too much!'

'Marinette,' he rasped as if his throat clenched. 'Marinette, I'm sorry too, I had no idea. Please let me-'

'No,' she shook her head. She didn't want his pity. She didn't want to hear him repeating that she is his friend. Not now. She was grateful for his friendship, she really was. But right now all she needed was to curl into a tight ball of sorrow and weep herself to sleep.

'Please, don't say it. You've already said that I'm your friend. I appreciate it. The friendship stays, if you still want it, I promise,' she wiped the tears that were now running uncontrollably down her face. 'You are a good friend, Adrien. Despite everything, never think otherwise.'

And before he could say anything that would make her feel even more humiliated, she climbed to her toes and planted a tear-streaked kiss on his cheek. Then she turned and ran.

* * *

 _Author's Note: Please, leave your screams in the comment box (not too loud though, I have a huge headache)._

 _I'm not gonna be posting for a few days now. I got really sick and my fever doesn't allow me to give this story the attention it needs. Hopefully I'll be back soon._

 _In the meantime you can visit perditaalottachocolate-blog . tumblr . com . Tikki Appreciation Week has started today and I've prepared art for it. Check it out (tag "Tikki Appreciation Week" or "perdita draws")_

 _A huge thank you to Remasa for beta reading this story._


	15. Heartache

_Author's Note: Thank you all for your support and for all the good vibes you've been sending my way._

 _I'm feeling marginally better so I've decided to get this one out. I do not promise to keep up with posting daily. It all depends on the meds to do their work._

 _By the way, I am stunned with this story's stats! More than 10,7k hits, more than 110 reviews, more than 120 follows and 63 favs already. You guys are the best! Thank you!_

* * *

 **Day 15. Heartache**

A cloud. A pigeon. A gutter. A window frame. A flower pot.

Adrien let his eyes wander purposelessly over the scenery outside his windows. His brain was currently in a shut-off mode. Reality just did not compute.

Was it possible to feel more numb that he felt now? He doubted it. He fought hard _not_ to recall the events of the morning and once again failed.

" _I… I like you, Adrien."_

" _More like... love-you like-you."_

His heart gave a painful tug.

" _I just can't keep doing this with you."_

He sniffed.

" _You are a good friend, Adrien."_

His fists clenched.

How many times had he relived this scene? Too many. He tried to go back to their previous encounter, but the memories of the party where probably forever stained by those damn photos and screaming headlines. No one had laid one finger on him and yet he felt as if he'd been beaten all over.

How. Did. This. Happen?

It must have been some sort of destiny's joke. A self-fulfilling prophecy. A tailored catastrophe. Everyone was right, except him.

Marinette did have feelings for him. This wasn't just friendship on her side, this was affection all along. And he used her, unknowingly, but undoubtedly. She was crushing on him, and he was having fun at her expense. He had been so happy. The hugs, the pecks on the cheek, the cuddles, the touches. The attention. It must have been a special kind of hell, experiencing all that with someone you li- _loved_ with full awareness that this is just all fake. His thoughts ran to Glaciator and Prime Queen, when Chat and Ladybug had feigned romance. Well, _Ladybug_ feigned, he never needed to. The giddy excitement he had felt, only to be replaced by rejection had a bitter aftertaste to it. The realization that he had served the same kind of fake treatment to Marinette was making him sick.

Only Adrien knew it wasn't fake. That somewhere on the way it stopped being "fun" and edged closer to a real relationship. He was tactile, he knew, but with no one except Marinette did he achieve such closeness. A closeness he longed for. A closeness he missed. A closeness he took without thinking, and when she gave, he pushed for more. Because it was making him happy, _she_ was making him happy.

That kiss. What an asshole he had been!

Make that double asshole. There was still the question of his feelings for Ladybug after all.

He could beat himself endlessly over this. He was in love with his partner. He really was. It didn't go away - the affection, the admiration, the adoration. They were still there. But now there was also Marinette. Sweet and kind Marinette, so similar to Ladybug, they could be sisters. No wonder he had fallen for her too. They matched in every virtue he could think of. Ladybug wore her red hero armor outside, but he knew there was a soft, caring girl inside. Marinette was all about softness, but he learned there was a diamond core hiding underneath.

It was slowly driving him crazy. The discovery that he too had feelings for Marinette. That they didn't cancel his feelings for Ladybug. The realizations sent his brain past the sizzling point into the numbness he currently experienced. He couldn't think about it anymore without the risk of overflowing but he couldn't stop either. The result without fail would be a miraculous headache any time now.

There was a knock on the door, but he didn't feel like replying to anything now. He heard a creak, but then it was closed again. Adrien returned to numbly watching the pigeons dancing on the roof opposite, when the knocking returned.

'Adrien?' It was his father's voice.

Heavy footsteps echoed in his cavernous room and came to a halt in front of the couch. A grunt, a click of tongue, a sigh. A hand on his shoulder.

'I'm not good at… this sort of thing,' he heard Gabriel's soft voice, 'but if you want to I can… sit with you in silence for a while.'

Company sounded nice, if he still could stay still.

'Okay,' he hummed under his breath.

'Okay?' his father gasped in surprise.

Adrien only nodded this time. Gabriel's hand left his shoulder and the man stepped around the couch to sit next to him. Comfortable silence fell over them, something he couldn't have imagined possible. His father cast him a few quick looks with the corner of his eye, but otherwise he didn't make any attempts at any talk, big or small.

Some time had passed and the urge to say something was getting stronger.

'Marinette and I...,' Adrien started, 'she... doesn't want to continue the fake dating thing,' he confessed and felt some of the weight lifted from his heart. He knew his father probably already was in the possession of all the important details of this morning's disaster.

The man nodded in acknowledgement. 'She wasn't the only one I was watching at that dinner,' he admitted. 'She is more than a friend to you too, isn't she?'

Adrien bit his lip. Confirming his father's observation wouldn't change anything. Not when there was another girl in the picture.

'What is this… hollow feeling... as if all the air was sucked out of me?' the boy wondered out loud.

His father sighed, musing over this.

'Speaking as a man of experience,' he finally said, voice tight, 'I believe that this is guilt, Adrien.'

'Hmm,' the boy murmured in reply. He closed his eyes. 'Thank you,' he whispered.

'For what?'

'For not saying "I told you so",' Adrien replied. 'I'm better now.'

He pulled his knees to his chest and rested his chin on them. In a way, his father's presence soothed him and helped him to clear his thoughts. He still had no idea what to do, but at least he had a vague idea what not to do. He shouldn't approach Marinette now, until he has it all sorted out, even if every fibre in his body screamed at him to pursue her, to get her back. She was never his to start with, but someday maybe she would be. Right now however he couldn't just break his heart in half. Marinette and Ladybug deserved better than that. He would have to find a solution and keep his distance in the meantime, not to cause any more damage.

Adrien thought about Marinette's parting words.

" _You are a good friend, Adrien."_

For the first time there was no excitement behind this term, but a sting. Of regret, of guilt, of disappointment. Welcome to the friend zone, he thought. And he suspected he would soon know how _she_ felt.

* * *

 _AN: Please let me know, what you think of this update. Your reviews mean the world to me._

 _Gabriel in this chapter was inspired by the Gorizilla and Captain Hardrock episodes. He showed a more caring side to him especially in the ending scenes._

 _A bow to Remasa, thank you for your support and great ideas! I strongly recommend you check out her miraculous stories!_

 _Visit me on perditaalottachocolate-blog . tumblr . com . I post this AdrinetteApril fic there, as well as snippets of my other works and my doodles (check out the tags "perdita writes" "perdita draws" and "april weather art"). I also share quite a lot of miraculous stuff, including my Tikki Appreciation Week art (tag "Tikki Appreciation Week")._


	16. Surprise

**Day 16. Surprise**

Marinette had slept all Saturday. She was vaguely aware of Tikki checking on her from time to time. Her mother came a few times too. She brought her food, and then took it away. Marinette couldn't swallow a bite, even if she wanted to.

On Sunday she forced herself to get up, and get through her motions on autopilot. She made an attempt at doing her homework, but soon gave up and climbed to her balcony. She slept some more on her lounge chair, allowing the sun to warm her. She knew she did the right thing, but it didn't change the fact that she felt bad. Bad because she had lied to Adrien. Bad because she used her alter ego to get an insight on his side of their relationship. Bad because she missed him. She had shot herself in the foot, really.

Before, when she had been pining hopelessly after Adrien, she wasn't aware of even one-third of the amazing things that boy was and had to offer. Then, she was pining hopefully, learning more and more. And when she finally gave up on pining, it was in the state of full awareness of what she lost. Marinette supposed it was an adequate punishment for what she had done.

She really didn't feel like going to school when the Monday morning rolled around, briefly considering faking a fever, but after one stern look from Tikki she changed her mind. Marinette had definitely reached her karma limit of lies and faking for this month, if not the whole year. So she promised herself not to cry anymore and not to show anyone how much she was hurting. She locked everything in the deepest darkest corner of her heart and hoped it would help her to get through the day.

She finally dragged her feet to the locker room just moments before the bell. To her utmost surprise she found a greeting card tucked into the frame of her locker. On the first page it had an artistic drawing of Ladybug and Chat Noir, with the feline hero leaning in, his trademark grin on his masked face, and words "I hope I'm not bugging you" spilling from his lips. Marinette frowned. She didn't really have time to muse over this, so she just dropped it into her bag and rushed to class.

Despite her earlier resolve her heart stuttered when she saw Adrien already in his place, pale and tired. His eyes were fixed on his tablet and he only mumbled a quiet "Hi, Marinette", when she passed him. He looked as awful as she felt. Could this be because of their break-up? Could he be missing her as she was missing him? Marinette tried to shake those thoughts off. He was probably feeling bad because of her confession. He was her friend after all, and he wouldn't stop caring for her, just because she felt different about him.

She sank to her seat with a sigh, only to find a usb key on her desk, tied with pink ribbon. Huh?

Something strange was happening here, but Mlle Bustier was already there and the lesson started, so the girl pushed the key aside for later inspection.

Alya insisted on going to the library on their break, so that they could check the contents of the key in private. When Marinette plugged the device into her tablet she found a few of Jagged Stone's early recordings, including some she had never heard. Alya shot her a confused look. Why would someone leave a thing like that on her desk?

Back in class Marinette was in for another surprise, as she found a flower waiting for her in her seat. Nino was glaring at Adrien, and the blond sat in front of her with an unhappy grimace on his model face. Alya's brow shot up, she cast Nino a questioning look, but he just shrugged and shook his head.

Marinette's gaze swept over the slumped figure of the boy in front of her and the pieces of puzzles clicked.

'Adrien?'

He half turned to her, still not meeting her eyes. 'Yes?'

'What is this?' she asked pointing to the flower.

'How would I know?' he mumbled.

'And you probably don't know anything about the key and the card either?' Marinette crossed her arms.

He whipped his head at her, something dark and sad flashing in his eyes, when he asked, 'What? I didn't- '

The girl sighed and rubbed the bridge of her nose. 'Look, you didn't do anything wrong,' she muttered. 'You don't have to give me anything.'

He pursed his lips. 'Good to know. And I didn't.'

'You didn't,' Marinette deadpanned. 'Suit yourself,' she huffed and turned away from him.

'Trouble in paradise?' Sabrina snickered at the exchange.

Chloe turned to her with a satisfied smirk. 'Oh, haven't you heard?' she coed, 'There is no paradise.'

'What?' a few heads turned to Marinette and Adrien who were both hunched in their seats, heads low and cheeks red.

'Just leave them alone, okay?' Alya barked, shooting them with a warning glare.

When the next lesson started Marinette did her best not to look at the boy in the first row. But she couldn't help it, that her eyes were drawn to him. To his hunched back, slumped shoulders, shrunk figure. He never looked worse than today and it made her feel awful. She resisted the urge to put a hand on his shoulder or in his hair. It would be so easy to comfort him with a simple touch. But "just" friends didn't do such things. The intimacy that transpired between them in the last weeks was lost and the sooner she accepted it, the better. Even if she was hurting all over.

As soon as the bell rang Adrien shot out of his seat as if it was on fire. Nino frowned at his friends back disappearing in the doorway and scratched his head. 'I swear I don't know what's going on with him today.'

Alya put a hand on Marinette's shoulder. 'Don't,' she said. 'You did the right thing by telling him how you feel.'

'It doesn't make me feel any better,' Marinette grumbled in reply. It didn't make her stop wishing Adrien would approach her and say that he reciprocated her feelings and that he wanted to be her boyfriend for real. The way he acted screamed hurt, and Marinette wondered if it was because he understood that she lied to him.

At lunch break Kagami joined her and Alya at their table.

'So,' she beamed at Marinette, 'did you like my card and the flower? I thought you could use some cheering up after the weekend scandal.'

'Those were from you?' Marinette spluttered.

'Didn't you read the card?' Kagami frowned. 'I'm sure I signed it and everything.'

'I'm… I'm sorry,' Marinette slumped, 'I was late for classes and…'

'That's okay,' Kagami shrugged. 'I just wanted to cheer you up,' she smiled again.

'Did you give one to Adrien too?' Alya zeroed her gaze on the girl.

'Ah… no?' the brunette ventured. 'Anyway, I wanted to know, if you'd like to maybe drop by to our training or grab a bite afterwards?' she asked hopefully. Marinette could swear the girl blushed. Was she…? Oh. _Oh_.

'Ah, I appreciate your offer, Kagami,' she replied keeping her face carefully blank, 'but I think I'm going to avoid social outings for a while.'

'Oh, right, yes, that's understandable,' Kagami deflated a bit. 'Yes, well, I'll be going then. See you around!' she waved and retreated as quickly as she appeared.

Marinette was beet red by the time she returned to classroom and Alya's snickers didn't help her one bit. Nor did Nino's chuckles as soon as Alya whispered something in his ear. Only Adrien's indignant expression when Nino passed him the news was a bit of consolation.

'Marinette,' Juleka materialized next to her desk, 'how did you like those Jagged Stone's recordings my brother prepared for you?' the girl mumbled under her breath.

'Those were from Luka?!'

'Yeah, didn't you find the card?' her classmate looked at her in confusion. 'I swear I left it beside the key.'

Marinette shook her head. Juleka frowned and scratched her chin as she looked around.

'There it is!' she exclaimed, already crouching to get the card from the floor, right under Marinette's seat. 'Here,' she passed the piece of paper, now covered in dust.

'Thanks,' Marinette flushed. 'And thank Luka from me. I liked them a lot. I've never heard some of them.'

'Yeah, I will,' Juleka nodded. She cast a worried look at Adrien before continuing in a hushed whisper. 'He asked if it would be all right if I gave him your phone number? So that he could tell you more about them?'

Beet red was apparently Marinette's destiny for the day. 'S-sure,' she stuttered, swatting at Alya's hand before her friend could nudge her under the desk. She could swear Adrien stilled at her answer. Right, she thought it had been him. She owed him an apology, but once again he left in a hurry and she didn't catch him.

Returning home was another torture. For the first time in weeks she made that way without Adrien at her side. She tried her best to remind herself that she went home alone hundreds of times before and it had never bothered her until now. But her hand was empty, her heart was in pain, and she felt the tears coming. And then she saw something on her roof, a darker shadow lurking behind the chimney. Was it…?

Marinette rushed to her room, taking two or three steps at once. She dropped her backpack on the chaise and ran straight to the balcony just in time to catch sight of a leather tail disappearing over the wall. Without thinking she caught it and pulled, causing the other end to lost his footing and drop straight on her.

* * *

 _Author's Note: Thank you for all your reviews, favs and follows. I am extremely happy you like this story so much! Please let me know, what you think of this update?_

 _Once again thank you Rem for beta reading!_

 _Visit me on perditaalottachocolate-blog . tumblr . com . I post this AdrinetteApril fic there, as well as snippets of my other works and my doodles (check out the tags "perdita writes" "perdita draws" and "april weather art"). I also share quite a lot of miraculous stuff._

 _Check out my art for Tikki Appreciation Week (this is also the tag), I posted some cosplaying kwami today (and it might have something in common with adrinette april)._


	17. Bumping into each other

**Day 17. Bumping into each other**

'Me-ouch,' Chat Noir moaned trying to free himself from the tangle of limbs and deck chairs. Marinette was definitely stronger than she looked.

He tried to make a move and bumped into her head, earning a juicy 'ow!' in reply. Turning in place and getting hold of his hands resulted in the two of them bumping torsos. Another try got him hitting her shoulder and when he made an attempt at scrambling to his feet, he got a kick as his foot got caught between her legs. All in all this was a very awkward position and Adrien was infinitely grateful he was in his catsuit and mask, so that his blush wouldn't be so apparent.

'Stop. Moving,' Marinette growled somewhere next to his head. She crawled from under him and a deck chair and lay on the floor, panting.

'I'm sorry!' he exclaimed apologetically springing to his feet and offering her a hand up.

'What are you doing here, Chat?' she drawled.

That was a good question. What was he doing there exactly? Well, he didn't have many reasons apart from the sudden fit of jealousy at the downpour of gifts his ex fake girlfriend received that morning. Which he decided to act upon, because he was a greedy and possessive, confused little kitty, who missed his Marinette. But those were Adrien's reasons. What would Chat be doing there? Because he should remember that he was currently of the feline persuasion.

'It's nice of me to drop by, I'm sure,' he purred brushing himself. 'Or down,' he flashed her a toothy grin, deciding to let his flamboyant alter ego to come out and play, and pushing all other feelings to the side.

Marinette just glared at him, stomping her foot. He returned the glare, eyeing her up and down. Only then he noticed how awful she looked. He hadn't dared to look at her closely at school, so he couldn't have noticed it earlier. And the knowledge this was all his doing sent an unpleasant shiver down his spine. He toned down the feline charm a bit, ears dropping and tail lashing behind him.

'I heard about your… well I _heard_ ,' he said, 'and I thought that as my favorite civilian sidekick you're entitled to a pick-me-up visit?' he ventured, rubbing the back of his neck which earned him a quizzical stare from Marinette.

'You heard?' she echoed, voice timid and quiet. It was torture to watch her like this.

'Yeah,' he sighed and dropped his gaze to the floor. Suddenly he remembered his previous visit on that same balcony, when he was licking his wounds after Ladybug hadn't come to the surprise he'd arranged. Marinette had been this sad then too, suffering from a heartbreak. And now he knew it was because of _him_. He had hurt her more than once, and each time it was because of his feelings for Ladybug. But why did she decide to confess and end the fake dating so abruptly, if it wasn't because of those pictures? If he wanted to make this right, he'd have to know.

'Can I… ask you something, Marinette?' he gathered all his courage to deliver this question.

'Ask away,' she shrugged.

Chat shuffled his feet, not sure, how would she take it. 'Why did you and that boy break up? You looked… happy together.' There. Was it nosy? Yes. Audacious? Surely. Well, curiosity _was_ his second name. Chat Curiosity Noir.

Marinette sniffed and squeezed her eyes shut, and his heart gave a painful tug at the gesture.

'It's complicated,' she tried to evade.

'I'm sure it is,' he murmured, moving closer to her. Maybe his presence would bring her comfort like last time? He couldn't be there for her as Adrien, but he could be as Chat. He took her hand. 'You don't have to tell me if you don't want to, but-'

Marinette shook her head. 'It's okay,' she sighed. 'I've fallen for him but he only saw me as a friend,' she admitted and something inside her shifted. The dam that she undoubtedly built to survive this mess broke. Her lower lip quivered and her hands trembled when she covered her mouth to keep the sobs inside.

The instinct was stronger than him, so he didn't fight it, but instead just enveloped Marinette in a warm leathery embrace. Chat reluctantly put his arms around her and pulled her to his chest. He inhaled sharply as he buried his chin in her hair, the familiar scent overwhelming his enhanced senses.

'It's okay, Princess,' he hummed, gently rubbing her arms. 'Shhh, it's okay.'

His touch and his soothing voice finally coaxed her to return the hug. Chat all but melted, when she pressed her wet cheek to his chest and her palms balled into fists on his back, scraping the magical material of his suit in the process and setting his skin on fire. Could she hear his erratic heartbeat underneath? Would she notice his shallow breaths, the result of their closeness? He didn't care. He'd gladly stay like this forever, relishing in her softness and trust.

'Thank you,' she murmured when she finally separated herself from him. He briefly mourned the loss of her warmth.

'Don't mention it,' Chat replied, his lips stretching in a fond smile. 'I see that you're better now, Princess?'

'Yeah,' Marinette sniffed and she smiled too.

'I'll be going then,' he winked, 'a hero's work is never done.'

She chuckled and waved at him, as he jumped away from her balcony.

Only when he was two houses away, his ears picked up a startled "What is _this_ doing here?!". He smirked knowing, she must have found the pink cat-shaped pincushion and the bouquet of apple blossom twigs he left on her table. How could Chat Noir know they were her favorite? That was future Chat's problem.

Now he had an investigation to pursue. He already heard Marinette admitting twice - once to his civilian self and once to his feline alter ego, that Adrien thought about her only as a friend, and this knowledge pushed her to end their fake dating. He really couldn't blame her for it. But how did she come to this conclusion? She mentioned mixed signals and she was right, because he was falling for her and it took some time to realize this.

But apart from that dinner at his house way back he didn't recall using the term "friend" in her presence. That meant she must have heard it from someone else. But who, if everyone was told they were dating? He crossed his father off the list - Marinette had no way to talk to him and he had no business in contacting her just for that. Nino and Alya? That was a possibility. Chat decided to follow this trail. He headed to Nino's.

He detransformed on the roof, stuffed a wedge of cheese into Plagg's mouth just as the kwami opened it to complain, and then he used the emergency exit to get inside the building. Nino was surprised to find him at the door. Adrien was surprised to find Alya inside. But maybe it would make things easier.

'So?' Nino quirked a brow as the three of them settled down in his room. 'How do you even have time to randomly drop by.'

'Right,' Adrien rubbed his thighs and bit his lip. 'Well, I had some of my schedule cleared in the past few weeks.'

'So you're on Marinette time?' Alya snickered and Adrien felt the heat coming up from under his collar.

'Yes,' he mumbled.

'You wanted to talk about it?' Nino said, sending Alya a warning glare. She pursed her lips. He raised a brow. She shook her head. He rolled his eyes. She stuck a tongue at him.

'You guys want me to leave so you can talk like normal people?' Adrien released an exasperated sigh.

'Fine,' Alya huffed. 'Pretend I'm not here.'

'So?' Nino got back to the beginning.

'Um, yes... ' Adrien suddenly regretted Alya's presence. 'So I've been wondering about what had happened… between me and um… Marinette. And I need to ask you… if-'

'Oh, for crying out loud, get it out, Agreste!' the Ladyblogger lost her patience.

Nino put a hand on his shoulder. 'Don't mind her. She always rushes into things,' he murmured. 'You can take all the time you need.'

Adrien nodded and closed his eyes to regroup his thoughts. 'I wanted to ask,' he finally said, 'if either of you told Marinette that I consider her to be just a friend of mine? You know, how at the party I told you,' he pointed at Nino, 'that we were only pretending, when I was still an idiot and didn't recognize my feelings?'

He heard Alya's sharp intake of breath and felt Nino squeezing his shoulder. His friend fixed the girl with another stern glare and she looked properly ashamed.

'Dude, I'm glad we're finally on the same page,' Nino replied. 'I know I teased a bit because you were so oblivious I couldn't help myself. But neither me nor Alya would never do such a thing as running to Marinette with a line like that,' he admitted and the girl fervently nodded, confirming his assessment.

'It is your confession to make,' Nino drawled, 'be it a friendship or a love one. We wouldn't dare to interfere with that.'

'Nino's right,' Alya piped in. 'Neither of us would do that. We were hoping you'd come around eventually.'

'Yeah,' Adrien sighed. 'Well, I'm sorry I haven't "come around" sooner,' he gestured his fingers to signal the quote marks.

'What a mess, huh,' Nino patted him on his back.

'But you will sort it out, right?' Alya was back on the case.

'I- ,' Adrien hesitated. He hadn't planned that far. 'I honestly don't know,' he confessed. 'Maybe Marinette would be better without me? I mean, it's not like the fans and the paparazzi and the attention are going to disappear.'

Nino and Alya exchanged worried looks.

'You'll figure it out, man,' his friend finally said. 'Take your time.'

'And make sure not to hurt her anymore, okay?' Alya added, voice gentle but with a warning edge.

'That I can promise,' Adrien replied wholeheartedly. He was the last person who would want Marinette hurt. Now the cogs in his brain started turning again. If neither his father, Nino nor Alya told Marinette he friendzoned her again, that left… Ladybug?

Oh, sweet irony. So all this was Ladybug's fault?

* * *

 _Author's Note: Ta-da... Adrien is finally doing something. What do you think?_

 _Once again thank you Rem for beta reading!_

 _Lately I've reached a milestone on my tumblr blog (perditaalottachocolate-blog . tumblr . com ) and I'm doing a give away , maybe you'd like to join?_


	18. Umbrella

**Day 18. Umbrella**

Marinette was never the type to stay in one place for long. She was always on the move, chasing after inspiration. But now every place in the neighborhood reminded her of Adrien and it wasn't doing her any good. She needed time, she needed space, she needed to get back on the horse. Designing always helped to ease her troubled mind.

That's why she started to go out farther than ever, waiting for the ideas to come. If she felt like it, she walked, but most often she ladybugged to somewhere nice and detransformed to look for inspiration. Each day she chose a different destination, but she couldn't shake off the feeling of being followed.

To her surprise she caught sight of Chat's alert figure over the rooftops a few times. It always got her all panicky that she somehow missed an akuma. But what almost gave her a heart attack on a few occasions was bumping into Adrien. She spotted him in random places, thankfully before he could see her, so she was able to hide and avoid any awkward situations. But she had to admit that either _Gabriel_ photoshoots were set in extremely strange locations, or the boy's extracurriculars got more exotic than ever.

To avoid more encounters like these she started to visit even further arrondissements and the outskirts of the city, which left her with only her yoyo as a reasonable means of transportation. The most direct downside of this was an increase in chocolate-chip cookie consumption, as Tikki demanded more fuel for prolonged transformations. Marinette secretly suspected the kwami just wanted the food to bite bide her time until she was finished with sketching.

It all backfired at them that day, when Marinette forgot to pack more cookies before she left her house. And of course she couldn't have chosen worse timing. Tikki ate every crumb just before the akuma alert came in. The kwami did her best to keep Marinette suited up, but after using up the Lucky Charm she ran out of fuel on their way back, leaving them a good few blocks away from home. And it just started to rain. Well, rain wasn't the right word to describe the waterfall pouring down on them from the skies.

Did Marinette take a raincoat or an umbrella with her? Hah, good joke. Why would she, if she thought she would be home way before she got wet? Holding her purse tucked under her arm to keep her kwami, her phone and her designs dry, she was walking as fast as she could through the cloudburst, grumbling to herself. She even gave up on avoiding puddles, she had two of her own in her ballerinas. Her dress was already drenched, her bangs plastered to her forehead, dripping water straight into her eyes.

And this was probably why she didn't see him before she smashed right into him with a wet squelch.

'Sorry,' Marinette mumbled automatically to a very firm and formerly dry chest.

'Marinette?' she heard a gentle murmur.

Brushing the wet hair out of the way she looked up and found a set of vibrant green eyes staring at her intently. She remembered this gaze from a few minutes before, when she left after the battle.

'Chat?' she whispered before she realized they weren't covered with the black mask.

'Sorry to disappoint,' Adrien chuckled. 'It's just boring old me,' he added scooting closer.

'I'm sorry,' she gulped and took a step back.

He caught her by her elbow to stop her from moving further away.

'Umbrella,' he quickly said. 'Stay under the umbrella.'

Only then Marinette looked up to see the black canopy shielding them from the rain.

'Adrien, I am soaked to the bone,' she giggled at the absurdity of his offer. 'There's no need to-' she was cut off when he thrusted the handle into her free hand.

'Right, wait a sec,' he said, already easing the overshirt from his shoulders.

'What are you-?'

'Here,' Adrien wrapped the shirt around her. 'I know it will soak in a few minutes, but maybe it will keep you warm for a while.'

'Thank you,' Marinette whispered, doing her best not to shudder as his scent surrounded her.

'I also have my scarf,' Adrien took the item out of his bag, 'here - wrap yourself up.' He unwound the blue fabric from its bundle and held it in front of her.

'Nope! Um… thank you, the shirt is more than enough!' she felt her cheeks getting hot and briefly wondered if the water on her face could vaporize in a cloud of mist. That would be fun.

'You sure?'

'Yes, thank you,' Marinette tried to wrap herself tighter in his shirt. 'That is your scarf. I'm good.'

'Okay then,' Adrien shrugged and tied the item around his own neck. 'You can give this back to me,' he took the umbrella again. 'Come on, let me walk you home,' he hummed smiling invitingly. 'I won't take "no" for an answer.'

'Thank you,' she mumbled again as she fell into step next to him.

It was so easy, walking with him under the umbrella, at a perfect pace. Marinette never considered herself an experienced umbrella sharer, because the few times she tried that, it always ended with people bumping into each other, going too slow or too fast, or one of the sharers getting wet because they were a bit out of the umbrella's range. Despite the average size of Adrien's rain stopper, nothing like that happened. They fit perfectly under the black canopy, they walked exactly at the pace comfortable for them both. And they were close enough to feel each other's body heat, but never bumped elbows.

Before she noticed, they were nearing Rue Gotlib, but they had to stop at a traffic light. Marinette looked around only to spot her own reflection in a shop window. She released a startled squeak at the sight of the wet hen in her dress. Adrien turned around to see what's caught her attention. He stood next to her in front of the window.

'Look at us,' he crooked a smile at the display.

'You look like sunshine,' Marinette mumbled, eyeing his dry and as always perfect blonde locks, and the blue scarf framing his beaming face.

'You look like rain,' he chuckled.

'Thanks a lot', she sniffled and brushed her bangs away from her eyes, just in case she would need to scowl at him.

'Rain is beautiful, Marinette,' he said all of a sudden, turning to her. 'There are thousands of songs in the rain, if you know how to listen. There are thousands of stories,' he whispered. Rain gives life.'

It gives love too, she thought, recalling a different rain and a different umbrella. Suddenly her eyes felt wet again. Adrien was staring at her expectantly, but what did he expect, she had no idea.

'A-choo!' her nose decided to provide an answer for her.

'It gives colds too,' the boy laughed, and pulled her to the crossing. 'Come on, before you get sick.'

Marinette looked down at their joined hands. Adrien gave a faint squeeze, but let go of her fingers as soon as they were on the other side. She didn't know if she should be relieved or sad.

'I have to go,' he said, as soon as she was under the awning of the bakery, saving her the torture of deciding on inviting him inside. Marinette shed his shirt and handed it back to him.

'Thank you,' she smiled.

'And here's my _rain_ bow,' he murmured. He raised his hand as if wanting to touch her cheek, but changed his mind mid-move. He dropped his gaze to his chest and started, blinking at his scarf. His brow furrowed.

'Bye, Marinette,' he mumbled, suddenly abashed. He turned and disappeared in the rain.

The scent of his shirt still lingering on her skin was her only proof this wasn't a dream.

* * *

 _Author's Note: Check out the amazing art for this chapter by Quesbee, you'll find it on perditaalottachocolate-blog . tumblr . com . Look under the tag "april weather art" (or just insert slash in the right places:_ _perditaalottachocolate-blog . tumblr . com [slash] post [slash] 173130741873 [slash] quesbee-look-at-us-he-crooked-a-smile-at-the )_

 _This is one of chapters that messes the pacing, at least in my opinion. But this is the consequence of structuring to the prompts. ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯_

 _A bow to Remasa, thank you for your support and great ideas! I strongly recommend you check out her miraculous stories!_


	19. Partners

**Day 19. Partners**

Confronting Ladybug about her talk with Marinette was turning out to be quite a challenge. Chat Noir could call her any time, but how would _Adrien_ arrange a meeting without causing too many questions?

In the last few days Ladybug had been restless. She went out on unscheduled solo patrols, transformed and detransformed a few times on the way, as if she knew she was being followed. Tracking her was proving to be nearly impossible, even with Chat's resources.

Adrien decided to follow her in his super suit and randomly detransform after a while in hope of meeting her in his civilian form. Not once did he succeeded in spotting Ladybug, but quite a few time he happened to almost bump into a very confused Marinette. Not that she noticed. He was keeping a low profile and managed to avoid being spotted by her. Was she tracking Ladybug too? Maybe she wanted more details about him saying she was just his friend?

After the encounter in the rain, when he simply couldn't ignore the soaking wet girl, Adrien's motivation at contacting the spotted heroine doubled. Plagg, unhelpful as usual, pointed out that it really didn't matter, but the boy got into his head that talking to Ladybug would somehow clear the air and help him clean up this mess. He wanted to be near Marinette again, he wanted to chase away that sadness and surrender he saw when he walked her home. He didn't dare to put a label on all the other things he wanted to do with her, not wanting to get his hopes too high.

Desperate times finally called for desperate measures. After the last akuma battle Chat Noir handed Ladybug a card with a location and time.

'What is it, Chat?' she frowned at the marked spot. It was that same bench over the Seine, where her and Adrien had their little talk after the photo-scandal.

'A guy we saved some time ago said he needed to talk to you about something,' he replied, keeping his features carefully blank. 'He sounded as if this was something important.'

Ladybug shifted her gaze to him, blinking in confusion. 'And you've agreed, just like that?' She snapped her fingers. He noticed that she seemed less patient lately and more acidic when it came to comebacks. Her eyes had lost their joyful gleam. He wanted to ask if something troubled her, but she made it clear this concerned her civilian identity, hence she couldn't say a word.

Chat shrugged. 'I trust him,' he stated and that was the end of it. That at least didn't change. They were partners and she still trusted him immensely. That was the first time he asked for something like that, so she assumed it was important.

Adrien arrived at the river bank with a few minutes to spare. He sat on the bench and fidgeted nervously, wondering if Ladybug would come. An irrational fear was screaming at him that she would flee the moment she saw him. He craned his head to see if he could see her coming from any of the buildings behind his back, but he searched and waited and Ladybug was nowhere to be seen.

He rubbed his thighs in exasperation and hid his head in his hands again, his fingers digging deep into his perfect hair and messing it. Why wasn't she coming?

'Adrien?'

Just like the first time, she appeared in front of him silently and out of nowhere. He looked up to see her in the exact same spot as before.

'Was it you Chat Noir mentioned?' Ladybug asked, voice tight and worried.

'Yes, Ladybug,' he confirmed. He wasn't so sure anymore this was such a good idea. He didn't like lying to her, and while omitting the full truth wasn't the same as lying, it wasn't honest either. Pretty much what Marinette had done not telling him how she had felt.

She fixed him with a puzzled stare. 'He said it was important? Is this miraculous related?'

Adrien flushed, his hand automatically going up and to his neck. He didn't see that coming. She must have thought it was about miraculouses or Hawkmoth. Bad, bad idea. Abort mission?

'Weeeeell, not really?' he offered.

Ladybug frowned.

'It's personal,' he sighed in resignation. She was probably going to leave any second now.

The heroine released a startled, 'Oh?' She was still standing where she landed, but now she tilted her head as if he piqued her interest.

'Remember when we talked a few days ago?' Adrien started. 'After those pictures of me and m- Marinette appeared in the internet?'

'Yes?'

'Did you talk to her about it?' he asked, watching her carefully.

'Why would I?' she shot back, eyes blown wide.

'I don't know,' he shrugged. 'I'm only asking if you did.'

'Why are you asking?'

'Because I need to know,' he replied, his patience growing thin. Why wouldn't she just answer? 'People were talking about me, about us, and… and…,' he didn't want to finish this sentence. He couldn't really say they broke up because of that, because they hadn't dated for real. But he felt as if someone robbed him off his time with Marinette and he wanted to find the culprit.

Ladybug's stance turned defensive. 'Look,' she rubbed the bridge of her nose and looked up. 'I swear I didn't talk to Marinette about you or about anything else, okay?'

Adrien stood up to be closer to her. Somehow he never noticed that he could tower over her if he wanted to, even in his civilian form. 'Listen, something happened between me and Marinette,' he explained, a desperate lilt to his voice, 'and I'm trying to figure out how to make it right.'

Her eyes snapped back to him. 'Make it right? Is it broken?' Did he imagine the scoff in her voice? 'I thought she was just your friend.'

That was it. That was the line. Adrien inhaled sharply. Words rolled off his tongue before he could stop them.

'So you _did_ tell the girl I love that she's just a friend to me?' he burst out.

There was a pause filled with his angry pants and her opening and closing her mouth a few times.

'The girl you-,' Ladybug finally choked out, going all pale. 'B-b-but you said-'

'You asked if she was my _girlfriend_ ,' he said with emphasis, 'not if I love her. It was a matter between me and her, no one else. Did you interfere?'

'W-w-what?' she stuttered.

'Did you tell her I think of her as only my friend,' Adrien asked again, silent plea in his eyes.

If she was out of countenance before, now she looked distraught. She stared at him for a moment, as if making up her mind. When she averted her gaze, the mask of confidence and power was back on. Only the pupils blown wide betrayed that she was shaken.

'I really didn't,' she claimed. 'Now excuse me, I must go,' she turned to him with a lopsided smile. 'A hero's work is never done,' she murmured.

He whipped his head at her. 'W-what?'

'It's just something Chat says sometimes,' she shrugged. 'Bug out!'

And before he could stop her, she was out of his sight, leaving him flabbergasted again.

Adrien didn't really remember how he got home, but his head already hurt when he closed the door to his room behind him.

'Talk to me, Plagg,' he shot at the floating black sprite, who flew out of his bag.

'Sure,' the kwami shrugged and cleared his throat. 'Uhm, uhm. So, did you know that camembert was originally invented in Normandy, in the midst of the French Revolution, by one genius of a woman named Marie Harel? That marvelous cheese took the name of her home town - _Camembert_. I've already signed the petition to recognize this word as the synonym of perfection, by the way,' he winked at the boy and resumed the lecture. 'But where was I? Ah yes. The wood box typically associated with this cheese was introduced a hundred years later, as a cheap way to carry the delicacy without squishing it to pulp. Which by the way is a total waste of…'

'Not about cheese!' Adrien groaned and clutched at his hair. His head was _swimming_ with unexpected thoughts and observations.

Things didn't add up. They didn't add up _badly_. What's worse, his subconsciousness was screaming at him in capital letters and kicking his consciousness viciously, but for the love of him he could not make out any words in that constant screech in his brain. Was he on the verge of epiphany or aneurysm, he really couldn't tell. Might as well have been both.

'About what then?' Plagg tilted his head curiously. His ears perked up.

'About who told Marinette,' Adrien huffed. 'It wasn't my father, it wasn't Nino nor Alya.'

'With you so far,' the kwami nodded appreciatively.

'And it wasn't Ladybug,' the boy concluded releasing another exasperated sigh.

'Correct.'

'So then who does that leave?' the boy scratched his aching head. 'I've eliminated everyone.'

'Not everyone, kid.'

Adrien looked at him as if he grew a second head. 'This doesn't make any sense!'

'It doesn't make sense, because you're thinking about it wrong,' Plagg lectured. 'If no one _you_ told tattled to Marinette… who does that leave?'

'Me?' Adrien's brows shot so high up they disappeared under his bangs. ' _I_ told Marinette?'

Plagg nodded eagerly.

The boy tossed this thought in his head a few times. 'But that's impossible,' he finally said.

'Is it?'

'Yeah, because that would mean…' he drifted off. 'The only logical conclusion would be…' he tried again. 'Ugh, why does my head hurt so much?'

'That's right kid, you can fight it!' Plagg flew closer and waved his paw encouragingly. 'You're just one step from breaking the glamour. Get enough clues together and it's gone.'

Adrien stilled and looked at the flying cat, his green eyes as big as saucers. His brow furrowed.

'Are you really saying,' he drawled, slowly, carefully, as if he was trying to grasp the edge of a thought that was sliding out of his reach, 'what I think you're saying?

Plagg's mouth stretched into a shit eating grin. 'What do you think, kid?

* * *

 _Author's Note: So... there's another deleted scene to this chapter, with my art... and a dialogue from Remasa, if you're interested. It is a lot on the crack side though ;) Check it out here:_ _perditaalottachocolate-blog . tumblr . com [slash] post [slash] 173161800533 [slash] april-weather-19-deleted-scene_ _. I also posted the last of Tikki Appreciation Week art today, if you like kwamis._

 _So tell me, what do you think about this chapter? Are you excited for the next one?_

 _A bow to Rem, thank you for brainstorming with me and beta reading this chapter!_


	20. Scarf

**Day 20. Scarf**

'Kill me, Tikki,' Marinette whined. 'Put me out of my misery!' She dropped to her cushion again with a dramatic flail of her hands.

'Get yourself together, Marinette,' the kwami was hovering over her head with a motherly scowl on her face. 'This is not the end of the world.'

'It definitely is,' the girl pouted. 'I messed up things with Adrien. I used my secret identity to spy on him. I used that knowledge against him. I'm gonna go die an old unloved crazy spinster, and I'll be found three weeks later half-eaten by Alsatians!'

Tikki shook her head. 'Aren't you overreacting a little bit?'

Marinette stuffed her head under a pillow.

'It's not like you're old already or keep any animals,' the kwami pointed out. 'And with your luck you might even get mummified into a nice wrinkled and dry corpse.'

A blue eye peeked from under the pillow. 'Thanks,' Marinette grumbled sourly.

'You're welcome,' Tikki beamed at her. 'It's good to always stay positive,' she lectured. 'Now get up.'

More of Marinette's face appeared. She shook her head. 'I am never leaving this bed again,' she stated solemnly.

The red sprite giggle was cut off when she looked at her Chosen.

'I'm serious, Tikki,' the girl warned. 'It's already decided. I will stay here and this way I won't do any more harm,' she declared.

'Come on, Marinette,' the kwami pulled at her pigtail. 'There are far worse things than learning your crush might reciprocate your feelings,' she suggested.

'Yeah, continuously lying to your crush is probably near the top of that list,' Marinette sulked. 'I am never getting up. I'm a mess, worse than Chat's cataclysm,' she reasoned.

'Wouldn't be so sure about that,' Tikki said under her breath.

Marinette's phone chirped, but she made no move to retrieve it. The kwami sighed deeply and flew to the device.

'It's the Ladyblog,' she said matter-of-factly.

'Akuma?' the girl raised the pillow only a bit.

There was a beat of silence, as Tikki read the entry and frowned.

'Tikki?' Marinette called. 'What's happening?'

'It's Chat,' the read sprite replied thoughtfully.

'Is something wrong with him?' the girl sat up so fast she felt dizzy. 'What does the Ladyblog say?'

Tikki brought the phone to Marinette. A deep wrinkle ran across the cute black dot on her forehead as she chewed at her cheek. 'I don't know,' she finally replied dropping the device into the girl's hands. 'It says here Chat was spotted on the Eiffel Tower some time ago and he just sits there. He doesn't move, he doesn't speak. He's wedged tightly between the beams and only his feet are visible from below.'

Marinette quickly browsed through the post and included pictures. She looked to the window. It was barely noon and there was no patrol scheduled for today. Why would Chat do such a thing? If he was in trouble he would call Ladybug or in other way let her know he needed her help.

'I need to check on him,' she decided forgetting in an instant about her plan to never leave her bed.

Tikki gnawed at her bottom lip. 'I don't like it,' she mused. 'Be extra careful, okay?'

Marinette nodded in agreement and called on her transformation. Soon she was approaching the tower. She spotted Alya at the base.

'Hey,' she called. 'You're the Ladyblogger, right?'

The girl turned to her and sighed in relief. 'Oh, Ladybug, thank god you're here.'

'What's happening?' Marinette felt the sudden spike of panic.

'Nothing really,' Alya explained. 'We're just worried because Chat is always so chummy and outgoing. And now he doesn't reply to anything.'

'Maybe he's taken a cat nap?' Ladybug jested but it came out a little strained.

The blogger knitted her brows. 'I'm sure there are far more comfortable places to chill than this.'

She pulled up her gallery and showed the footage of two feet dangling from a beam.

'That is strange,' Ladybug agreed. 'Well, time to see what's this all about.'

She climbed to the second floor before looking around for Chat's location. She spotted him soon enough. He must have felt extra mean choosing that place, because there was nowhere to stand on. She would have to hang on her yoyo if she wanted to get to him.

As she neared him, it turned out that he was hidden under a beam in such a way, that she couldn't see the upper half of his body, no matter how she angled the yoyo.

'Chat? Chat!' she called, getting as near as possible, so that she wouldn't have to shout.

'M'Lady,' a mumbled acknowledgement of her arrival came from under the beam.

'Is everything okay?' Ladybug asked, relieved that he at least spoke to her. 'Why are you here?'

There was a deep exhale and a screech of his claws against the metal of the beam.

'Nothing is okay,' he muttered.

'Welcome to the club,' she snorted.

Chat hummed something inaudible in reply, but to her ears it sounded suspiciously like "Not yet".

'Wanna go somewhere else?' she asked instead.

'I'm gonna stay here, thank you very much.'

Ladybug rolled her eyes at the grumpy tomchat's antics. 'Wanna tell me what happened, then?'

'Can't,' he droned. 'It concerns my civilian identity.'

'Oh,' she tightened her grip on the yoyo. Her arms begun to go numb from hanging in this position for so long. 'Is there a way to tell me without giving me too much personal details?' she asked. 'Maybe I can do something.'

'Oh, you've already done enough, believe me,' his voice sounded almost ominously, but there was no doubt that he was hurting.

'Come on,' she encouraged. 'Give it a try. We're friends, right?'

His snort was so loud, people downstairs probably heard it too.

'Chat?' she was grasping at straws at this point, uncertain how to get to him. 'Please, talk to me?'

There was another deep sigh, a pause and-

'There's nothing to talk about, LB,' he finally said. 'I screwed up. Big time.'

'Oh.'

'There's this… girl,' he continued and Marinette's heart clenched. This was something new.

'I- I was stupid. At first I didn't see how amazing she was. Then I did, but I was still stupid because I thought of her as my friend and before I realized I-,' he sighed again,' I hurt her.'

This sounded oddly familiar. Her ears twitched as she listened to his story, peppered with sighs and pauses.

'She agreed to my moronic idea of fake dating even though it must have been really difficult for her,' she heard him say and her grip on the yoyo loosened, causing her to slip down a few centimeters.

'Fake d-dating?' she asked faintly, catching herself before she slid further down.

'Yeah,' he confirmed gravely. 'The stupidest of my ideas that made me fall for her and lose her at the same time.'

She heard a sniffle that probably marked the end of the tale, but she was unable to respond. Between the numbness of her hands and the numbness of her brain, she couldn't sort out what she should do. There was a thought nagging at her mind, that she couldn't quite shape, like an itch that she couldn't reach.

'So there you go,' Chat breathed sadly. 'My misery in a nutshell.'

'It sounds like…' Ladybug hesitated, briefly wondering is she had the right to make that assessment, 'it sounds like you love that girl,' she pointed out, ignoring that strange tug her heart gave.

'Yes,' he whispered through a shaky breath. 'I do.'

'I- ,' she squeaked, 'I'm sure you'll find the way to make this right,' she offered. 'You can start by being honest with her.'

'I already have,' he replied scrambling to his feet. 'Kind of started anyway.'

His head emerged from under the beam, hair in even more mess than usual, ears dropped. He smiled sadly at her. 'Thank you for listening, my Lady. I feel better now.'

'Of course,' she nodded watching as he crawled into her view. 'If you ev-'

She choked on her tongue, when she saw a blue scarf wrapped around Chat's neck, obscuring the bell from her view and billowing behind him. Her partner pulled himself up to the beam, oblivious to her shock

'W-where did you get that?' Ladybug burst out before he could get away.

'You like my scarf?' He smiled tenderly, hand clutching at the garment. 'She made it for me,' he purred, his claw tracing the edge where a silver thread was woven into a curvy M.

'I'll be going, LB,' the lovestruck smile morphed into his trademark grin, 'As I apparently like to say, a hero's work is never done.'

With that he shot her a two-finger salute, and vaulted himself of the building and into the brightness of the sunny afternoon.

Ladybug let go of her yoyo.

* * *

 _Author's Note: I mean this is still the "Reveal Week" of Adrinette April, what did you expect? xD_

 _Also I love how POV shifting plays well with the cliffs. Do you like it too? Please tell me!_

 _A sincere thank you to Rem who's a fountain of good ideas and advice._

 _Visit me on perditaalottachocolate-blog . tumblr . com . I post this AdrinetteApril fic there, as well as snippets of my other works and my doodles. I also share quite a lot of miraculous stuff._


	21. Tendencies

**Day 21. Tendencies**

Adrien lay on the bed with a content smile on his face. His fingers brushed over the hem of his scarf. He sprinkled some water on it and traced the gentle curves of Marinette's signature. The silver thread was so pale and delicate you could easily miss it if you weren't looking for it. Unless you got it wet, like when you put it next to something soaked with rainwater.

He had been startled when he discovered the fancy M on the blue fabric after walking through the rain in Marinette's company. He didn't care how or why, but now he knew that the second of his most cherished treasures came out from under his Princess's hand.

His _Lady's_ hand.

He sighed in relief. He wasn't a two-faced weasel unable to decide which of the two amazing girls to pursue and wanting them both. He had fallen in love with one and the same girl twice, on both sides of her mask, recognizing her for the extraordinary person she truly was.

His heart was whole again.

Everything snapped together in one giant completed puzzle. Ladybug didn't betray his trust. _He_ betrayed his trust. He wanted a chance with Ladybug not realizing he was getting the very chance he desired.

As soon as he had made the connection the headache stopped. In his mind the Ladybug's mask had dropped and Adrien was shocked to discover Marinette's face underneath, hiding in what he could describe only as plain sight. He decided to skip the minor freak out on "How had I not seen this before?". He had suffered through enough pain breaking the glamour to know magic had been involved. Besides, the proud look Plagg had given him was enough of incentive not to dwell on this subject.

At the moment however his kwami wasn't pleased with him.

'You realize you probably broke Ladybug, kid?' Plagg shot him with a hostile glare.

'Nah, I'm sure she'll be all right,' Adrien replied stretching himself lazily and yawning. Now that he'd made the two most important discoveries of his lifetime, and acting upon them hopefully had managed to push Ladybug into the acknowledgement as well, he felt the tension in his muscles dropping. The stress of the past few days was slowly dissolving leaving tiredness behind. He could really use a catnap.

'You dropped two confessions on that poor girl in mere hours and just left!' his kwami ranted in the meantime.

Ah, Adrien thought with a mix of awe and satisfaction, the look on Ladynette's face when she had noticed the scarf wrapped around Chat's neck was priceless. He couldn't wait for the moment he'd be able to tease her about it.

'C'mon, Plagg,' the boy shrugged, 'she needs time too. I wonder if she broke the glamour already…'

'Hah! Are you even serious?' the little cat eyed him suspiciously. 'That scarf wasn't subtle. You deployed an atomic bomb there, kid,' he shuddered. 'You were supposed to just tell her! Just confess! Why couldn't you just do that?!' the sprite whined. 'Tikki is going to skin me alive. She's going to make a purse for her cookies out of my hide,' he whispered, his eyes bulging out.

It was so comical Adrien couldn't help but to snicker.

'Rude,' Plagg snarled. 'Care to explain yourself?'

Adrien pulled himself to a sitting position. 'Have you ever heard of the Gordian Knot, Plagg?'

'Pffft! Have I heard?' the kwami scoffed. 'Kid, I was there! How do you think Alex managed to conquer most of Persia?'

'Alex?' the boy hummed. 'You mean Alexander the Great'?!

Plagg shot him an unimpressed look, 'He wasn't that great before he got me.'

Adrien stared at him for a while, before shaking his head. 'Anywaayy… about the Knot. You clearly know the meaning of it, right?' he watched the little cat nodding. 'Me and Marinette made enough of a mess for four people, even if there's only two of us. At this point we were both so wound up, something would have got to give. Straightening this kink by kink maybe would be possible, but it would be much more painful and time consuming.' He stood up and strolled to the window. 'And I am frankly tired of waiting.'

'So you've cut the knot,' Plagg whistled appreciatively. 'Cataclysmed it with a surgical precision.'

Adrien winked. 'Between me and Ladybug I'm the one who knows when destruction is a better solution. Now it's time for creation to come around.'

'Creation comes from destruction,' the black kwami murmured. 'That could work. And maybe I'll live.'

'I'm sure you will,' the boy chuckled stretching again and sinking to his sofa exactly where the sun had warmed a nice spot just for his needs. 'I thought a direct confession would scare her or make her run away. She needs time for this, just as I needed it,' he added making himself comfortable among the cushions.

'She may have a freak out or two,' Plagg warned him, settling himself on the back of the sofa, directly over Adrien.

'Probably,' the boy shrugged. 'But she will sort it out eventually and when she does, she'll come to me, I'm sure.'

'You're surprisingly calm about this whole thing.'

Adrien smiled to himself. 'I've freaked out enough over this in the last month. I'm well beyond that point.'

He put his hands behind his head and exhaled deeply, letting all the tension out. And then a snort escaped him. Plagg eyed him questioningly.

'I really would love to be a fly on her wall when she realizes,' Adrien supplied chuckling happily, 'that I wasn't the only person friendzoning people here.'

The kwami snickered. 'So you're staying here instead of rushing to her?' he asked.

'C'mon Plagg,' Adrien patted the place next to him invitingly. 'A nice sunspot and a free afternoon. Don't you see the appeal?

'Maybe a little,' the sprite considered this.

'I'll scratch your tummy,' the boy tempted.

'Well, I'm definitely not gonna scratch yours,' Plagg gave in and plopped himself in the patch of sunlight. His eyes closed in a blink.

Adrien removed one hand from behind his head and rubbed his finger over the kwami's belly earning a deep purr in reward. 'I prefer the ears anyway,' the boy whispered.

The sprite cracked one eye opened. 'Hey, you think Princess would be up for a little scratch?'

The boy blushed, his face dissolving into a dopey smile. 'I certainly hope so,' he sighed.

'There's more cat in you that you'd like to admit, kid,' Plagg said with a hint of pride.

Soon the sounds of gentle snoring filled Adrien's room.

* * *

 _Author's Note: I'm sorry I haven't replied to your lovely reviews yet. This is a very busy time, and I'm struggling to get the next chapter out on time. But I promise I will reply to everything! Your reactions to this story make me so happy! Thank you all so much for your support! I greatly appreciate it._

 _Now tell me, what you think about the latest update? I am a very curious kitty ;)_

 _A gigantonormous thank you to Rem who helped me get this chapter right._

 _Visit me on perditaalottachocolate-blog . tumblr . com . I post this AdrinetteApril fic there, as well as snippets of my other works and my doodles. I also share quite a lot of miraculous stuff. There's a give away currently going on, if you'd like to take part in that (check tag "500 followers give away")._


	22. Fashion

_Author's note: I am tired. So tired. I'm just gonna put it here and fall asleep. This hasn't been beta read yet. You have been warned._

* * *

 **Day 22. Fashion**

'Marinette, you've gone through those fashion catalogues twice now. I don't think you'll find what you're looking for in there,' Tikki sat on Marinette's desk and cast her a worried look.

'That scarf has to be there somewhere, Tikki,' the girl frowned in exasperation. She'd been browsing through men scarfs from the past few years, then widened her search to women accessories too. But she couldn't find the blue scarf Chat was wearing nowhere in there.

'You won't find it,' the kwami closed the catalogue the girl was looking at and turned off the screen with on-line ones. 'He said that girl made it for him.'

Marinette scrunched her nose and squeeze her eyes shut. 'I know that scarf, Tikki,' she said stubbornly.

'Yeah, you do,' the sprite breathed in defeat. 'Oh, I'm gonna kill Plagg,' she muttered under her breath. 'And the blond smartass will be next in line.'

'I feel like my knowledge of fashion failed me,' Marinette folded her hands on the desk and hit them with her forehead. 'Owwww! How hard did I bang my head at that fall?' she wondered rubbing her temples. 'It wasn't that high and the Jules Verne awning definitely made for a soft landing.'

Tikki eyed her once again as if making up her mind. 'You didn't hurt your head in the fall, Marinette,' she finally said.

'I didn't?' her Chosen looked at her perplexed. 'That's good. But why does it hurt then?'

The red kwami took a deep breath and pursed her lips. 'Because,' she drawled, 'you are close to breaking the glamour.'

'Huh?'

Tikki rubbed the bridge of her nose. 'You're about to figure out Chat's identity,' she huffed. 'The pain is there to discourage you from getting all the pieces together. Judging by how pale you look, your subconsciousness already knows, probably knew at the tower.'

Marinette started, mouth agape. 'I… I almost know who Chat is?'

'Yes.'

'And you're encouraging me to break that… wasisname?'

'Glamour,' Tikki explained patiently. 'That's the magic that prevents you from recognizing Chat in his civilian form. No, wait! It's the other way around,' she gnawed at her paw. 'It prevents you from recognizing his civilian form under the mask. It's very powerful but not unbreakable. Or foolproof,' she muttered to herself.

'Right,' Marinette nodded slowly, mulling over this. 'And you're not stopping me?'

The red sprite bit her bottom lip. 'Well, there's not much I can do when you get enough clues together, and Chat just made sure you did. Besides, if Chat already knows, it's only fair you know too.'

'Chat knows!' the girl looked at her in panic. 'I've been so careful, Tikki. I swear. I didn't give him any clues and he couldn't see me detransforming. I was looking around,' she frowned, when she remembered seeing him a few times when she was looking for inspiration. 'Was he spying on me?'

'Calm down, Marinette,' Tikki sighed. 'He didn't do anything. You kind of started the chain of events that led to this yourself. You gave his civilian self the first clue a while ago, and another one recently.'

The girl gasped and covered her mouth. 'But- but- does that mean he knows me outside of the suit?'

'He does.'

'Then why didn't he just say it?'

Tikki fell silent for a while. 'I think he might have figured it out himself only today,' she replied, her furrowing brows betraying she understood more than she was letting on. 'And as there's a lot of… information and relations to process, he probably wanted to give you time to come to terms with implications of… who you both are under the masks.' She hesitated. 'Which now that I think of it, was not a bad idea after all.'

Marinette nodded, taking it all in. As soon as she started to ponder over those new bits of information, the headache picked up. She hissed, withdrawing from that path of thought. 'Who is he then?' she asked instead.

The kwami shook her head, 'I can't tell you. You have to figure this yourself. It might hurt a bit, but it'll pass as soon as you find him. All the pieces are there.'

'Can't you help me?'

'I can… suggest some directions in your quest,' Tikki offered. 'But no clear answers.'

'Oh,' Marinette deflated a bit. The headache reappeared as soon as she started musing over Chat. 'What can you tell me then?'

'I can help you organize what you know,' the kwami supplied. 'This won't make it easier to break the glamor,' she warned, 'but it might speed things up a bit, so that it doesn't hurt for too long.'

The girl squirmed at the mention of the pain. It wasn't really encouraging, but her little flying friend was convinced it could and, considering the circumstances, even should be done. She took a deep breath and embraced herself for whatever sensations might come.

'How do I start?' she asked.

'Do you recall any recent moments, when someone reminded you of Chat?' Tikki suggested. 'Like maybe they looked a bit like him, or acted like that?'

'Yes!' Marinette exclaimed, 'I've been having a lot of these thoughts lately!'

'Do you remember with whom?'

'Yes, it was-' the girl tensed, when she hit a mental block. 'It was-,' she tried again. 'I almost see it, Tikki. I almost see his face, but I don't remember!'

'Okay, then,' the kwami settled herself on Marinette's palm and her touch eased some of the pain. 'That means you were right. That was Chat.'

Marinette perked up, pride bubbling in her chest. She tried harder to push through and recall who was she with when she had those thoughts, but the resistance was too strong, and the memories she just recalled were already slipping away. It was like fighting with a water current. She couldn't get ahead and even staying in place was proving to be too much.

'I can't,' she panted, clutching at her head.

'That's okay,' Tikki soothed. 'Let's try something different. 'What did Chat say at the tower? Do you remember that?'

'Yes,' the girl was surprised to have access to their full conversation. But she supposed it was because that was with his hero self. 'He said he liked a girl. No, _loved_ , he said he loved that girl,' she couldn't help feeling a bit disappointed at that particular revelation.

It wasn't that long ago, when Chat confessed he loved her. No, she reminded herself, he confessed he loved _Ladybug_ , it just so happened that he confessed that to Ladybug's civilian self. And Ladybug rejected him. She let him down as easy as she could, sending him off right into friend zone. There was another boy in her heart. A boy who only this morning told her that he loved her. No, she corrected herself, he told _Ladybug_ , but it just so happened that the girl who took his heart was Ladybug's civilian self.

Great, now her head _and_ her heart hurt. But wouldn't that mean she was on the right track?

'Chat said he hurt the girl, and only when he lost her he discovered his feelings for her,' she continued. 'And he said it was his stupid idea of… his stupid idea of… ' she hesitated. 'It was something sounding very familiar but I can't remember it now,' she complained helplessly.

Tikki nodded encouragingly. 'Do you remember what he was wearing?'

'A blue scarf,' Marinette answered without missing a beat. 'A very familiar looking blue scarf. It's like a deja vu, but I can't place that scarf,' she huffed again racking her brain for any recollections of the blue garment and the pain doubled. 'Owwww,' she hissed. 'The scarf, Tikki,' she breathed through the spike of pain. 'The scarf is the answer.'

The kwami's eyes shone with compassion and hope. 'That's right, Marinette! You're really close now.'

'Awwww, I can't,' Marinette sunk to her chair. 'It's like a barrier I can't break. Help me, Tikki!' she pleaded.

The red sprite thought for a moment, before stretching her lips in a sly grin. 'I think your _devotion_ to _fashion_ might help you after all,' her eyes twinkled when she flew to the stash of fashion magazines, and dug out Marinette's favorite and well used La Mode issue with a familiar blonde model on the cover.

Marinette's features relaxed. 'Oh, that's my favorite,' she sighed, feeling a bit relieved that she could take her mind off figuring out Chat, even if for a while. Her thoughts ran to their morning encounter and Adrien's confession and warmth filled her. She went further down memory lane, recalling how nice and comfortable she had felt wrapped in his overshirt as they were walking through the rain. She thought of his gentle eyes when he offered her the shirt and his scarf.

The headache picked up, gripping her brain in an iron vise. But this time the memory of Adrien's green eyes gave her the strength she needed. She fought back focusing on the scarf, wading through the current that wanted to push her away. The scarf was the answer, she was sure. She was so close. The scarf. Blue scarf. She made it herself for Adrien, just like Chat's girl did. She thought of another set of green eyes looking at the blue scarf with endless tenderness. She remembered that person turning his eyes to her, watching _her_ with that tenderness, with that affection. If only she could peel that black mask off his face...

'Tikki? Tikki!' she cried. 'Oh. My. Goooooood!'

The pain stopped.

* * *

 _AN: I think I owe you an explanation. This last part of the reveal arc might be dragging a bit, but it's because I needed to fit it to Adrinette April prompts. I also want to avoid repeating myself (that's why there's no freak out like some of you expected - because there already was one two chapters ago). But judging by your comments you won't be complaining about it._

 _I think you'll be happy to know we are slowly leaving the angst behind. Yeah, I know, bo-ring fluff ahead! ;)_

 _What are your thoughts on this chapter?_


	23. Secrets

**Day 23. Secrets**

When Adrien woke up from his nap a few hours later the sun was already setting. He grabbed his phone, sure to have some messages or missed calls, but found his inbox empty. Suppressing the sting of disappointment he pulled Plagg out of a freshly opened box of camembert in order to check his _other_ inbox, only to find it as empty as his civilian one. He released his transformation and let the grumbling kwami return to his abandoned cheese.

Surely Marinette would have him figured out by now? Why didn't she contact him or even pay him a visit? Driven by a sudden hunch he rushed to his computer to load the _Ladyblog_. And suddenly he wasn't so calm about the whole ordeal after all.

'Plagg,' he whispered in horror. 'I broke Ladybug!'

Courtesy of Alya he watched the footage of Ladybug's fall over and over again, with his kwami's mad cackles as the soundtrack, until he felt sick.

'Relax, kid,' Plagg wiped away a stray tear, 'The suit would absorb a lot of the hit, and she landed on top of the restaurant, not the metal floor. She'll be fine.'

'But what if she's not!' Adrien blurted out panicky. 'What if she hit her head? What if she gets a concussion? Or an amnesia?!'

'Pfffft,' the black cat burst in laughter again. 'Then she won't remember either one of your confessions! And maybe she won't even remember you!' He fell into an empty cheese box and started rolling and cackling again.

Adrien ran his hands over his face. How did he not see that coming? It took Marinette's special talent to pull off a stunt like that. Mademoiselle Madly Clumsy! Despite his concerns he couldn't help but to smile.

'Plagg, we're going out,' he declared to his kwami's choked protest. 'I need to check this myself.'

'You mean you need to check on your _guuuuuurrrrrlfrieeeeend_ ,' the kwami teased.

Adrien ducked his head, a strange mix of anxiety and affection filling him. 'Well, she's not my girlfriend,' he rebuked and before Plagg could reply he added with a determined gleam in his eye. ' _Yet._ '

The little cat made a show of rolling his eyes. 'Finally,' he sighed. 'Come on, let's check on your Princess,' he chuckled, hiding in Adrien's pocket.

Well, easier said than done. It was already evening when his car pulled in front of the bakery. A very grumpy Gorilla was asked to stay at the wheel, while Adrien ran inside. Monsieur Dupain cast him a hesitant look, but shook his head. Marinette apparently wasn't feeling well, and she had said she didn't want to see _anyone_. The way he passed this request left no doubt that by _anyone_ he meant "ex fake boyfriends". Needless to say, this did nothing to dispel Adrien's concern.

Now if it wasn't for his bodyguard waiting in the car, he would transform behind the first shrub he'd find and use the superhero way over the rooftops. Instead, he got back to the vehicle and fidgeted nervously for the whole eternity of three minutes that it took to return to the mansion. In another three minutes he was already out and heading back to the bakery.

Even before he got to the building Chat Noir already noticed that in each of Marinette's windows the curtains were pulled shut. He quietly landed behind the chimney and crawled to her balcony, careful not to make a sound. The little space was empty and silent. He dared to drop lightly to the floor and took a quick peek at the skylight.

A gasp escaped his parted lips as he saw her.

Marinette was curled on her bed, snuggled in her pink blanket. Her chest rose and fell to the steady rhythm of deep and calm breaths. Her eyes were shut, the scarce light from the roof window making her long lashes cast deep shadows over her face. He was relieved to notice her relaxed features and the gentle smile that stretched her slightly parted pink lips. A halo of dark hair freed from the pigtails surrounded her head, silky and smooth. To say she took his breath away was to say half of it. The sight of her calm and rested, sent his heart into a wild dance and caused his hands to itch, longing to touch her.

Chat stayed at the skylight, bounded by an invisible force, watching Marinette sleep. It was his guilty secret, the pleasure he took simply from her presence. When his eyes finally started to wander over her covered figure and her bed, he spotted a pen in the girl's hand and some sort of notebook resting opened next to her, her other hand sprawled over a page filled with Marinette's distinct cursive. It looked like she fell asleep while writing.

Driven by his trademark curiosity he pulled out his baton and used the lens of the camera to look at the words on the page.

 _Dear Diary,_

 _I don't know what to do now that I know everything. Should I run to him and ask for forgiveness? Should I dig a deep hole and never leave it ever again? Should I in turn tell him everything?_

 _Should I tell him about the messages I deleted from his phone? About all my attempts at confessing to him? About the heartache at rejecting him when he confessed to Ladybug? About the valentine I never signed, that would make him reject me first?_

Adrien blushed under his mask at the mention of the awkward and hapless dance they had been performing around each other in and out of suits for such a long time. Now he was sure Marinette had it all figured out, not only his identity and his feelings, but also each and every situation their paths tangled and met. He averted his gaze from the diary, suddenly ashamed at invading her privacy. There were some secrets that should remain hidden until she was willing to share them.

He put his baton on his back, and with one last longing look retreated to the rooftops, and to his home. Exhausted he threw himself on his bed only to toss and turn for half of the night, to Plagg's not so subtle complaints. Whenever he closed his eyes he saw Marinette's face, he heard her voice calling him by either of his names. His stomach twisted with worry. Was she willing to give them a chance? Or would she try to escape, afraid of getting hurt again? He would have to do everything he could to convince her he would not make the same mistake twice. He would not let her go. Not when he found her, when he knew she loved him too. The thought of her affection was his last before he finally surrendered to slumber.

Adrien jerked when he felt Plagg's weight resting on his head. It was one of the kwami's most annoying ways to wake him up.

'Rise and shine, kid,' the little cat grumbled. 'We have people to meet.'

His eyes fluttered opened and he squinted at the black blob appearing in his vision. 'What people?'

'See for yourself,' Plagg nodded to his bedside table and to a small box that wasn't there in the evening. It was tied with a blue ribbon matching his scarf in shade. A decorative "T&S" left no doubts as to the origins of the package.

Inside Adrien found a raspberry minitarte, accompanied by a little card with only two words written in a familiar cursive handwriting: " _The Trocadero"._

'H-how?' he asked, knowing perfectly well the windows were closed and that Nathalie wouldn't come to his room before he got up himself.

Plagg shrugged, very unconvincingly. He looked extra grumpy, but with a hint of something new. Something that to Adrien looked suspiciously like abashment.

'Ladybug was here?' the boy looked around, as if expecting to find a guest staring at him.

'Ladybug's _kwami_ ,' the flying cat explained gloomily. 'Your presence is requested,' he added eyeing the card. 'I was told not to keep the ladies waiting.'

'Oh,' Adrien sighed. ' _Oooh!_ ' he cried jumping out of bed.

Plagg watched his attempts at making himself ready with a cheeky smirk. 'Don't forget to take your scarf,' he offered sourly. 'Apparently it's a bit cold today.'

Soon the boy was jumping into the car again, thanking the heavens for his clear weekend schedule. Taking two or three steps at a time he ran to the top of the Trocadero, looking for his girl.

There weren't many people there on that chilly, overcast morning but it took a while to spot her. Marinette was hunched over her sketchbook, thoughtfully chewing the end of her pencil. Hesitant, he took a step back to watch her for a while. The embodiment of creation in her element. So Ladybug, yet so Marinette. Elated, Adrien observed as a new drawing appeared on the page, a little masterpiece created with just a few strokes of the skillful hand.

'Are you gonna stay there much longer?' he heard her amused voice. He hadn't noticed when she turned to him.

'Um… sorry,' Adrien said shyly. 'I didn't want to interrupt.'

'I was only keeping myself occupied while I waited for you,' she said with a small smile.

That smile left him defenceless, unable to decide what to do. He didn't know if he should hug her, or twirl her in his arms, or just shake her hand and maybe peck her cheek? Now he knew what she meant in her diary. There were so many questions, so many issues between them, he was finding it hard to decide how to act. His indecision must have prompted her to take the initiative.

'I brought you something,' Marinette said standing up. A light blush covered her cheeks when she came to a halt in front of him. He had yet to move or say anything in reply. The girl put her sketchbook in her bag, taking out a semi-circled notebook he immediately recognized. But he knew better than to show it.

'Here,' she said passing him the diary. He noticed the lock was opened. 'No more secrets,' she added dropping her gaze to her shoes.

Slowly, reverently Adrien reached out. He wanted to take the notebook, but when his hands touched her palms he froze, unable to move, unwilling to put an end the thrilling sensation of skin on skin. She must have felt it too, her eyes shifting between his face and their joined hands resting on the diary.

'I- ,' he rasped, voice failing him.

'Please-,' she tried with the same result.

BOOOOM!

A lightning bolt struck nearby and the deafening thunderclap startled them both. The first drops of rain plopped onto the notebook.

The water sobered him up. Adrien snatched the item and put it back in her bag in one fluid motion, still managing to keep his other hand on hers.

'I won't be needing this, my Lady,' he murmured. 'I want to hear everything right from the source,' he supplied, grabbing her hand firmly in his. 'Lets go,' he said, pulling her to the car.

They ran to the beat of splashing droplets, a routine familiar yet new and thrilling at the same time.

* * *

 _Author's Note: *_ _Nervously bites at her nails and looks at the calendar._ _Groans in exasperations that she just can't write more than one chapter a day*_

 _Thank you for all your reviews, favs and follows. I can't stop squealing about how happy you make me!_

 _Once again thank you_ _Rem_ _for beta reading this chapter!_


	24. Piano

_Author's Note: This is the longest chapter in this story and it took forever to write it, but I had the idea for the piano prompt in my head almost since the beginning of this story and I wanted to make it right. I hope it was worth it! In other news: April Weather reached 100 favs today and I am over the moon! Thank you!_

 _There are two songs in this chapter, I list them at the end. I encourage you to check them out to know what I'm writing about._

 _This hasn't been beta read._

* * *

 **Day 24. Piano**

By the time the car rolled into the Agreste mansion driveway the drizzle turned into heavy april shower. The storm hummed in the distance, lighting the sky with occasional fireworks. The closer Marinette got to the intimidating household of the fashion mogul, the less confident she felt. She could talk to Adrien at the Trocadero. That was her turf, her stones. But in here, in the world of vast empty halls and monochrome decor she was out of place.

Yet she was here, walking up the steps, with Adrien's hand firmly gripping her own. He beamed at her as he led her inside and up to the first floor, stopping only for a moment to request snacks and drinks to be brought later to his room.

The rain was mercilessly slashing against the enormous windows, as the door closed behind them, enveloping them in the splashy white noise. They've reached their destination but neither of them knew what they should do now.

Adrien let go of her hand and invited her to take a seat. Marinette sunk to the sofa, fidgeting nervously. She was already missing the warmth of his hand, but instinctively felt it wouldn't do them much good at the moment. She had to focus on what she wanted to say and what she needed to hear. Thankfully her friend understood that as well because he took a seat away from her, allowing them for an easier eye contact and less... distractions.

'So…,' Adrien ducked his head, pursing his lips.

'So…,' she echoed, uncertain what to say next.

'You mentioned secrets?' he prompted.

'There's quite a few of them,' she admitted. 'Some are not so secret anymore, _Kitty_. It's a lot to process, I guess,' she offered.

'Yeah…,' he sighed and an awkward silence fell over them. And then-

'Oh, for crying out loud!' Adrien's pocket complained. 'Tik, where are you?'

A black blob with cat ears popped out from under the boy's shirt. It must have been Chat Noir's kwami. Marinette watched mesmerized as he flew up sniffing until he found her bag.

'Really, Plagg?' Tikki stuck her head out of the purse.

'Don't tell me you're not fed up with this drama,' the flying cat rolled his eyes, completely ignoring Marinette's dazed stare.

'Give them some time,' her own kwami chided. 'They really need to talk.'

'Yeah, yeah,' the black sprite addressed as Plagg grumbled, before getting back to his holder. 'Adrien, mind if we borrow your phone?'

She noticed that the boy watched her kwami with similar fascination. 'No…,' he zeroed on the black cat. 'But why?' he added, patting his pockets to locate the device.

'There's this culinary channel on youtube and today's episode is dedicated to Marie Harel,' he offered. 'Remember her, Tik?'

'How could I not?' Tikki perked up. 'She was a very inventive bug.'

Plagg's lips quirked in a satisfied smirk. 'Wanna watch it with me, then?'

Tikki shot Marinette a questioning glance. The girl nodded slightly. It would be better if they were left alone, away from prying eyes and ears. That Plagg had a good idea, even if he was a little grumpy. Soon the two kwami dashed away into the second level of Adrien's cavern, taking the boy's phone with them.

Before disappearing among the bookshelves Plagg turned and called over his shoulder. 'And it's nice to meet you Maribug! That was a pretty impressive fall yesterday!'

' _Plagg!_ ' Tikki and Adrien hissed in unison, but the black kwami's grin only broadened.

'Sorry,' the boy whispered. 'He really cares, just doesn't want anyone to know.'

'He's cute,' Marinette supplied, thinking about Plagg's little ears and whiskers and tail. 'A little bit like a flying hamster.'

'Hey! I heard that!' an indignant complaint came from the upper level.

Marinette smirked and winked at Adrien. No kwami was going to put her down. But her playful mask dropped as soon as she saw the boy gulping and biting his lip. It was time to get to business.

'Where do we even start?' he sighed.

The girl pondered over this. 'We need to do this bit by bit,' she suggested. 'And I'm gonna take the same advice I've given Chat at the Tower. It's time to be honest.'

Adrien nodded solemnly. 'Ladies first?' he chuckled gesturing to her.

Ooooh, the mangy cat. Was he trying to mess with her again? Marinette would have none of that.

'I seriously don't know if I want to strangle you or to hug you right now,' she rolled her eyes. 'That was a very mean thing to do, Chat, dropping all this information on me and just _leaving_.'

'Hey, turnabout is fair play,' he shot back. 'Everything I did, you did first. In and out of suit I might add,' he raised a hand and counted on his fingers. 'A love confession - checked. Prying for information while using your secret identity as a cover - checked. Giving clues to your civilian identity while in suit - checked. Leaving after messing with your partner's head - checked,' his smile turned devious, when he added the cherry on top. 'Friendzoning - _checked_ , my Lady,' he finished of with a two finger salute.

Marinette felt the rush of blood to her cheeks. The urge to flee was suddenly very strong. But Adrien was right. She had done all those things, and she had done them first. It was time to face the music.

'That's true,' she admitted sadly, 'and I'm sorry.'

She saw Adrien's smirk dissolving into a compassionate frown as she soldered on. 'I'm sorry for not being honest, at least from the beginning. For being so desperate for your affection that I used Ladybug to spy on you,' she wrung her fingers, dropping her gaze to the floor. 'I'm sorry for hurting you.'

Adrien stood from his place on the sofa and sauntered towards the windows. He watched the water running down on the other side of the glass.

'Well, I am actually happy you did all those things,' he said at last. 'I mean, yeah, it sucked for a bit, especially the knowledge how much of a jerk I had been to you,' he turned to her with his encaptivating green eyes. 'But I'm not so sure I would be able to notice how I feel about you, if you haven't left me, Marinette. I would have been still torturing myself over loving two girls, when there was just one, albeit worth loving her in double.'

Was it getting hot in here? Marinette wasn't sure if the dizziness she was currently experiencing was the result of humidity, stress or Adrien Freaking Agreste repeatedly telling her that he loved her.

'Anyway, I'm sorry too,' he continued, unaware of the sudden heat that rushed through her veins. 'For being so oblivious. For friendzoning you so many times. For not seeing what was in front of me this whole time.'

Marinette nodded her silent acceptance of this apology, but Adrien's attention was elsewhere. In a few long steps he reached the piano that was tucked in the corner of his room. It said a lot about this space, that one could put a grand piano there and it wouldn't stood out or loom over other furniture.

Adrien stroke a few keys at random, causing a tentative cascade of flat tones. Then his eyes skipped to the window and to her. He grinned his Chat Noir trademark grin, displaying his gorgeous dimples in all their glory.

'I think I was right comparing you to rain the other day,' he mused, startling Marinette with a sudden change of subject. He sat by the piano and put his hands on the keys.

'You can be sweet and gentle,' he supplied, his fingers beginning their dance over the keyboard, 'like an April shower.'

The notes were playful and lively, with the backbeat of droplets so similar to the rain outside.

'You're creation's little helper, just like rain that gives live to everything green,' he spoke as he played, 'You also _pour_ your ideas onto paper and make them into reality.'

Now the music shifted, the notes becoming more insistent, sharper, the staccato breaking the previous smoothness of the melody.

'But at the same time you're a force to be reckoned with. Like the power of nature, both you and rain are capable of sweeping a man off his feet,' he smiled to himself as the melody gained momentum and gravity, the chords stronger, forceful, slower but louder. 'Of causing disasters and floods.'

Marinette listened, bewitched, as he pulled the notes out of his instrument, spinning his tale at the same time. Adrien beckoned her with a slight nod of his head and she complied taking a place behind his back and putting a hand on his shoulder. He brushed it lightly with his cheek as he played.

Once again the melody changed its tone, returning to the calmer, more gentle path, just like the April storm outside, to eventually die out in a light sprinkle with sun taking over the skies.

'You are my rain,' he whispered when the melody came to an end. 'I wouldn't have it any other way.'

Marinette's heart stuttered, her head spinned. She heard him playing before, but this was something else. This wasn't just a performance. It was a tribute, an ode. A confession. If she was blushing before, now she was close to self combust.

Adrien watched her expectantly. Sunlight reflected off his blonde mane and he beamed at her with silent hope. He said what he had to say. Now it was her turn. And when the idea for an answer popped into her head, Marinette almost burst into laughter. At the last moment she toned it down to a giggle and a smile.

She moved to stand next to him, prompting the boy to make a place for her on the bench. When she was younger she had taken a few piano lessons, alas she got bored pretty quickly, fashion taking over her heart. But she still remembered a few tunes, admittedly not well, and only the right hand's part.

She put her fingers on the keys, and smirked when Adrien gasped, surprised that she decided to reply in kind.

She started playing and singing at the same time, voice a little tight. 'You are my sunshine, my only sunshine~ '

Now it was his turn to stifle a laughter, but his smile was so wide it was threatening to rip his face in half.

'You make me happy when skies are grey~ ' she sang peeking at him, careful to hit the right tones. Tears appeared in the corners of his eyes, and she could only hope they were joyous tears, and not an assessment of her musical abilities.

'You never know, dear, how much I love you~ ,' her voice trembled on that line, first time she said this so openly. 'Please don't take my sunshine awaaaay,' she ended prolonging the last syllable funnily. She didn't remember how the song went after that.

Adrien wiped a tear that managed to escape to his cheek and made a show of clapping his hands soundlessly in appreciation of her performance. He put a hand on her shoulder and gave her a brief hug, before reaching out for her hand still splayed on the keys and entwining his fingers with hers.

Marinette thought about him playing for her, how his eyes shone when he followed the melody, how happy he seemed expressing himself through music.

'Have you ever thought about doing this?' she asked gesturing to the piano. 'Playing? As more than an extracurricular activity?'

Adrien frowned and scratched his chin. 'You mean like professionally? I guess not,' he shrugged. 'I'm having fun with Kitty Section, but I don't think I'd be able to keep this up.'

'Just imagine: _you_ , on stage, next to Jagged Stone, performing live for screaming crowds!' Marinette moved her free hand in a wide arc, as if painting the scene for him.

He ducked his head, his lips quirking in a shy smile. 'You're the only crowd I want to play for.'

He put two fingers on her chest and walked them up to her chin, at the same time scooting a bit closer. Their sides now bumped easily, his arm around her back, their fingers interlaced. The thumb of his other hand lingered just under her lower lip. Marinette didn't withdraw, but revelled in the comfort of physical closeness. A closeness they shared as Ladybug and Chat Noir in battle, and as Marinette and Adrien during their take at fake dating.

But now it was different. It was legitimate. No masks, no half-truths, no lies.

She saw Adrien getting even nearer. His gaze flickered between her eyes and her lips. She licked hers instinctively. This was it, their big moment was coming. No nosy witnesses, no meddlesome kwamis, just them, about to learn another thing about themselves.

'Marinette,' he whispered and she felt goosebumps raising all over her skin.

She leaned in. 'Yes?'

She could feel his breath on her lips now.

'Can I-'

'Ekhm - _ekhm_!' she heard a third voice clearing their throat. Loudly. Ostentatiously.

Adrien's eyes widened as he withdrew, his hand shooting up for his neck to rub it in his trademark gesture. She whipped her head to the door, to see what caused this reaction.

'Mademoiselle Marinette!' Monsieur Agreste was standing at the entrance. 'Good morning. I wasn't aware Adrien had a guest.'

'Good m-morning, Monsieur,' she stood up and bowed slightly. She risked a glance at the man. Although his face was as blank as ever, he had a confused vibe to him, as if he couldn't decide if he should be worried, angry or amused.

She felt Adrien's hand sliding into her palm, just like he had done at the dinner. The boy stood next to her.

'Marinette was waiting out the rain,' he explained. 'We got caught up in the storm earlier.'

Gabriel's gaze travelled to their connected hands and he frowned. 'I see,' he murmured. He took off his glasses to rub the bridge of his nose, apparently considering Adrien's words. Then with a deep sigh he put the glasses back on and shot the two of them with a stern look.

'In the light of recent events I will ask straight away,' he said, 'are you going to pick up this charade again?'

She felt Adrien squeezing her hand tighter. Marinette sent him a searching look, uncertain what to reply. He beamed at her with the smile worth of a thousand suns. 'It's not a charade anymore, Father,' he stated and her heart did a series of somersaults.

Monsieur Agreste raised a brow. 'Good,' he drawled. A shadow of a smile danced on his lips. 'You're welcome to stay for lunch, if you don't have any other plans, Mademoiselle,' he offered, heading to the door.

She was about to stutter a timid "Thank you" when he turned back to them, as if remembering something. 'And Adrien, with this new development,' he gestured to them both, 'I insist you leave the door open when Marinette is here.'

Now Marinette wasn't sure if she hadn't imagined the satisfied smirk on Monsieur Agreste's face as he left. What she definitely hadn't imagined though, were the whining sounds coming from her new boyfriend.

* * *

 _AN: Adrien played Chopin's Prelude No. 15, also known as "Raindrop". Marinette played and sang "You are my sunshine". Just their little inside jokes ;)_

 _This chapter marks the end of the reveal arc. There's only one arc left - dating. Are you excited for the last 6 chapters? Because I sure am. I just need to write them now... -_-_

 _Anyway, I am extremely curious, what you think about this update? Please let me know!_

 _Visit me on perditaalottachocolate-blog . tumblr . com . I post this AdrinetteApril fic there, as well as snippets of my other works and my doodles (check out the tags "perdita writes" "perdita draws" and "april weather art"). I also share quite a lot of miraculous stuff._


	25. Sneaking Out

_Author's Note: Behold the dating arc! This hasn't been beta read._

* * *

 **Day 25. Sneaking Out**

'Come on, come on, come on,' Adrien was stomping from one foot to the other, to Plagg's silent complaints. 'Where are you, bug?'

He checked his phone again. His fencing practice ended exactly 20 minutes ago. That was enough time for the entire team to take a shower, change and leave the locker room. Now Adrien was the last one left, waiting for his girlfriend to sneak in, before anyone would notice them.

 _His girlfriend._

The boy smiled at the thought. His goofy megawatt grin earned a gagging sound from his kwami.

'Will you stop already?' Plagg chided. 'It's not like you're official or anything.'

That was, unfortunately, true. They weren't official. Or at least not _publicly._ Oh, the irony. The two of them had been plenty affectionate in public, when they had been only two friends faking it. And now, when they were dating for real, they were doing this in secret.

It was his idea, to which Marinette, his wonderful girlfriend and partner, agreed without protest. Adrien still wasn't okay with what happened with their pictures from the pool party. He still was reluctant to show himself in public with anyone except his bodyguard. He didn't want to attract this kind of attention, didn't want to bring it to Marinette. It was an awkward and humiliating invasion of their privacy the first time round. He hoped the hype around his person would die out with the end of the fragrance campaign. Fans would move to some other celebrity. The media seemed to provide an endless supply of those. Maybe XY would launch some new products drawing the attention he craved so much, or some other local wannabe would step in.

For now, Marinette and Adrien were left with surreptitious glances, seemingly accidental touches, and stolen moments between classes. Just a few days passed since the fateful Sunday, but he was still giddy with excitement at this new - as his father had called it - development. He had yet to take his girl on a proper date, and today he was finally going to do something about it.

Everything was already prepared and secured at the destination he had in mind. All that was left was for Marinette to finally appear, so that they could sneak out and head to the spot he had found. But she still wasn't coming.

Adrien risked a peek through the locker room door. A glimpse of dark blueish hair caught his attention. He chuckled, withdrawing instantly and hid next to the entrance, pressing himself close to the wall. He heard footsteps and launched himself at the girl who entered.

'Gotcha!' he cried, capturing her in a bear hug.

'Jeeeez, Adrien, since when are you so clingy with me?'

This was definitely not the voice he had expected. He loosened his grip. Kagami's confused face appeared in his vision.

'Sorry!' he jumped away, raising his hands in an apologetic gesture. 'I thought you were someone else.'

Kagami brushed her hair behind her ears. 'Who would that be?' she frowned.

'Nino,' he blurted out. 'I thought you were Nino. I'm waiting for him,' he babbled. 'Yes. He's very late. Have you seen him?'

The girl put a hand on his shoulder. 'Sorry to disappoint you,' she pursed her lips, suppressing a smile, 'but I saw him leaving with that blogger, washername-'

'Alya?'

'Yes, her. He already left,' she waved in the direction of school entrance. 'But I did see your ex girlfriend on the stairs, if you're looking for a replacement,' she supplied innocently. 'She's talking to the blueberry cutie pie.'

He choked on his own saliva. 'Who?'

'You know, the blue haired guitarist,' Kagami rolled her eyes, walking to her locker and taking her bag out, 'you're in that band together.'

'Luka?' Adrien asked. Now he was doubly confused, with his teammate's description of the boy and with the sudden spike of jealousy that made his teeth clench.

'I don't know his name,' she shrugged heading for the door, 'but I wouldn't mind getting his number,' she winked. 'I guess, I have something for bluenettes,' she smiled at him coyly, 'and a little bird told me, the one I had my eyes on, might not be as single as she officially claims to be,' she pouted in mock sulk.

'Just… just ask him out,' Adrien suggested, recognizing a good opportunity to get rid of two rivals at once. 'He's a really nice guy. And you might find that you're quite his type,' he dropped his voice to a confidential whisper.

Kagami eyed him up and down. 'Maybe I will,' she raised a brow. 'Have a nice date, Adrien,' she shot over her shoulder and sauntered out of the locker room, before he had time to look properly indignant at her suggestion.

When she was gone Adrien exhaled in relief, bending in half. He was never ever going to pounce on anyone again, or at least not in the next week or so.

'Are you okay?'

Now _this_ was his girlfriend's worried voice.

'Yeah,' he straightened up and opened his arms. Marinette smiled and without any preamble slipped in between them, pressing her cheek to his chest.

'Mmmm,' she hummed, 'I missed you.'

'What took you so long?' he murmured, taking a lungful of her scent.

'Luka was asking me for help.'

Adrien stilled. He really had to learn how to tame his feline possessiveness. 'What kind of help?'

Marinette withdrew from the hug to look at him. 'He wanted to ask someone out,' she said smirking. 'He saw me and her talking a few times, and thought I could help,' she added, before he could get more jealous.

'Oh,' he deflated in an instant. 'Am I allowed to ask, who is he interested in?'

'You are,' she bopped him on the nose. 'It's your friend, actually. A very attractive fencer with quite a temper,' she giggled, as his brows shot up.

'Well then, he might be in for quite a surprise,' Adrien chuckled.

'And what's that supposed to mean?' Marinette frowned.

'Oh, nothing,' he shook his head dismissively. 'Anyway,' he took her hands in his, 'now that you're finally here, very, very late, I might add,' he scolded earning himself an unamused glare. 'Will my Lady do me the honor of sneaking out with me to our first date?'

Marinette brightened up. 'Do you even need to ask, my sneaky Kitty?' she whispered causing a pleasant shiver going down his spine.

He stuck his head out of the locker room, and after confirming the coast was clear, he pulled her to the entrance.

'Where are you taking me?' she asked.

'You'll see,' he wiggled his brows. 'It's a special sur- _purr-_ ise, just for my Lady,' he added admiring delightful blush dusting her cheeks as he pressed his lips to her hand.

* * *

 _AN: Thank you for all your support for this fic, for your lovely reviews, favs, and follows, and reblogs over tumblr. This is like a dream coming true._

 _As always, I appreciate your comments. Let me know what you think!_

 _If everything goes well, I should be posting two chapters tomorrow, and I'm going to try to complete this in April! Keep your fingers crossed! And follow/fav if you don't want to miss it. Fanfiction doesn't bump the story on the list if it's updated within less than 24 hours, which will be the case here._


	26. Picnic in Paris

_Author's Note: Surprise! First of two chapters for today is up! Enjoy ;)_

* * *

 **Day 26. Picnic in Paris**

Fourteen years of living in Paris, and the city still held surprises for Marinette. The city _and_ her boyfriend. The garden must have been taken straight from a dream or a fairy tale. She had to pinch herself to check if this was real. Only Chat could have made snow fall in April. Well, a special kind of snow anyway. White petals drifted in the warm breeze, carrying the gorgeous spring scents with them and Marinette was mesmerized.

'How did you find an apple orchard in Paris?' she whispered, afraid to disturb the blissful moment with louder sounds.

'Finding it was the easy part,' Adrien grinned. 'I stumbled upon it a while ago on patrol.' He put an arm around her shoulders and led her further between the trees. 'Getting the permission to use it for this occasion was more tricky.'

Everywhere Marinette looked, she saw flowers and shrubs in full bloom. Little white stones crunched under her feet. Insects buzzed industriously among the greens. And her boyfriend took her to _an apple orchard_ for a picnic.

'I had to pull a few strings,' he admitted, as they reached the blanket under a broad apple tree, but the Agreste name opens many doors. I wanted today to be special.'

'Pffft,' Plagg snorted from his bag. 'The only string he had to pull was named Nathalie.'

'Nathalie didn't find it for me,' Adrien pointed out. 'She only helped me to get the owner to agree to our visit.'

As Marinette took a seat on the blanket he started to unpack the basket that was waiting for them. Her eyes got wider and wider at the variety of treats that appeared in front of her. Fruits, bread and pastries took almost all available space.

'Did you prepare this yourself?' she asked, astonished with the effort he took to make this happen.

Plagg snickered from somewhere inside the basket and Adrien blushed.

'Well,' he rubbed his neck, 'I did pillage the pantry this morning, choosing everything I wanted to bring, and then I left it in much more competent hands of our chef,' he confessed. 'The bread and the pastries are from your parents' bakery.'

'Almost as if you did this with your own hands,' the little cat sneered and Adrien's smile dropped.

'Plagg!' Marinette chided. 'He's just messing with you, Chaton. I love it!' she exclaimed taking his hand. 'You've put a lot of thought into this, I see that.'

'Only the best for my Lady,' he murmured pressing a featherlight kiss to her palms.

The girl took a moment to inspect all the delicacies he chose.

'My, my,' she smirked, 'strawberries and sparkling grape juice? Are you trying to seduce me, monsieur?' she coyly fluttered her lashes, satisfied that his blush got stronger. But she knew he wasn't going to get flustered that easily.

'Always,' he murmured back, pouring the beverage into her glass.

'Tikki!' they heard a cry from the basket. 'Come here quick! Kid got all the good stuff!' the black kwami stuck his head out. 'There's camembert, gorgonzola, olives and the brie you like.'

Tikki flew out from Marinette's purse. 'Oooh, that sounds lovely,' she chirped. 'Is there any dessert?'

Adrien pointed to one of the containers. 'Double chocolate chip, no nuts, is that right?'

The red sprite released a joyous squeak, 'Oh, Marinette,' she feigned a confidential whisper joining Plagg in the basket, 'he's definitely a keeper.'

'Ah, my plan has been exposed,' the boy gasped. 'By the way, is it working?' he wiggled his brows at the girl.

'We shall see how the picnic goes,' Marinette drawled coquettishly. 'Don't get so full of yourself, those clouds might still ruin it for you.'

Adrien's gaze traveled up, to where the grey clouds gathered, whirling with the promise of another spring shower.

'Well they wouldn't be a problem, if a certain someone got to the locker room on time,' he pointed out.'

Marinette huffed in mock offence and the both of them burst into laughter.

Adrien raised his glass, 'I propose a toast,' he announced. 'To serendipitous fate that brought us together.'

She tapped her glass with his. 'To coincidence that opened our eyes,' she replied.

Strawberries never tasted sweeter, than on the blanket under an apple tree, in an orchard hidden in the outskirts of Paris. But maybe it was because of who brought them for her?

* * *

 _AN: The next chapter is for the "First Kiss" prompt [nudge, nudge, wink, wink]and I'll be posting it in a few hours. If you haven't followed or faved this story yet, it's a good idea do to this now, so you won't miss it. Fanfiction doesn't bump the story up on the list, if a new chapter is posted within less than 24 hours from the last update._

 _In the meantime, let me know, what you think of the picnic Adrien organized for his girl?_

 _Visit me on perditaalottachocolate-blog . tumblr . com . I post this AdrinetteApril fic there, as well as snippets of my other works and my doodles (check out the tags "perdita writes" "perdita draws" and "april weather art"). I also share quite a lot of miraculous stuff._


	27. First Kiss

_Author's Note: It's finally here! This hasn't been beta read._

* * *

 **Day 27. First Kiss**

Adrien was having the time of his life. If he could, he would trap this moment forever, to be able to return to it when feeling down. Happiness bubbled in his chest like the sparkling grape juice. They feasted, they talked, they laughed, and before he noticed Adrien was sprawled comfortably on the blanket, with his head on Marinette's lap. The best place on Earth. And when her slender fingers slipped into his hair and started their slow journey over his skin he was sure he already went to heaven. He wasn't even particularly ashamed of the low rumble that escaped him when she hit the spot just behind his ear. Marinette giggled lightly and continued to massage his scalp with gusto.

He watched her through half lidded eyes. Her hands were occupied with the delightful caress, but her eyes wandered over their surroundings. She absorbed the sights radiating with quiet joy. He recalled how elated she had been when a while ago he asked about the apple blossoms that she had incorporated in some of her designs. That's how he'd learned apple trees in bloom were her favorite thing which had given him the idea for a perfect date.

Adrien shifted a bit to be able to watch her face. Joyful Marinette was the most beautiful sight in the world. Dark tresses framed her face. Her eyes shone reflecting the sunlight. Her cheeks were colored with excitement. Her lips stretched in a soft smile, one she probably wasn't aware of. He felt his gaze drawn to those lips and found himself wondering if they would taste of strawberries like he imagined. He looked up, trying to keep an eye on the rainclouds, but they seemed safely away, the sun winning the battle over the skies for now. The orchard basked in the afternoon sunshine together with the two of them. There was still time before the inevitable shower.

The boy reached out to graze his fingers over her forearm and up. Marinette looked down at him and her smile widened. He let his hand travel higher, until it reached her face brushing gently and cradling her cheek. She tilted her head into his palm and closed her eyes at the caress, humming appreciatively. Yet her fingers didn't stop their industrious work in his hair leaving him conflicted between wanting to sit up and get more than a kitten kiss and wishing to be petted forever.

Plagg saved him before this internal turmoil would tear him apart. 'Ahem,' he meaningfully cleared his throat drawing their attention. 'Have you forgotten about the last part?' He wiggled his brows and nodded to Adrien's phone. 'Shall I?' he offered.

'Thanks Plagg,' the boy stood up mourning briefly over the loss of Marinette's touch. 'Please, do.'

His girlfriend looked between them surprised and confused. 'What part?' she asked.

Adrien offered her a hand, 'The part when we dance in the sunlight under the apple trees, my Lady,' he murmured as Plagg busied himself with the phone. Adrien helped the girl to her feet and led her away from the blanket. 'May I have this dance?'

Marinette looked at him coyly from under her dark lashes. 'You are full of surprises today, Chaton,' she noted with a smirk.

'Only today?' he raised a brown. 'Then I definitely need to step up my game.'

Plagg, the miraculous DJ, finally found the music app, and soon soft tones of a slow song filled the afternoon air.

Adrien pulled Marinette closer and wrapped his arms around her waist. He felt her fingers slipping into his hair at the nape of his neck, her cheek pressing into his chest. His own cheek rubbed against her silky tresses as they swayed to the soft rhythm, treading over the juicy green grass. The wind picked up and showered them with white petals filling the air with the heady scents of spring.

Songs came and went, while they danced, enveloped in each other's embrace. If this wasn't the perfect moment, Adrien would seriously doubt there was any other. His heart sped up at the thought of tasting her lips for the first time. He rubbed his chin over her head and purred, 'Bug?'

She hummed in reply, tightening her hold on his shoulders. He sighed blissfully, before pulling away from the divine touch. 'Hey, Marinette?' he smiled at her and she blinked owlishly turning her face to his.

'Hmmm?'

His gaze flickered between her eyes and her lips intently, in silent question. He saw the tip of her tongue clicking behind her teeth and breathed heavily in anticipation, before she smiled back at him. Her fingers left his hair to brush over his cheeks. He raised one of his hands to reply in kind, keeping the other one wrapped tightly around her waist.

'Third time's the charm,' Adrien murmured leaning in…

...only to jump away as the clouds broke above them, drowning them in the foreshadowed shower.

The cloudburst left them drenched in seconds. Both teens looked to the sky, where sun was still shining, mocking them.

'You have got to be kidding me,' Adrien groaned at the universe. 'It's a sunshower! A freaking sunshower!'

Marinette laughed, shaking the water off her clothes and hair. 'A-ha!' she exclaimed, 'Finally! You're wet too!' she guffawed in a very unladylike manner, which he still found endearing.

He patted his drenched locks, now plastered to his scalp and pouted.

'Stop sulking,' she pulled him closer, 'you're a cute wet kitty!'

Adrien narrowed his eyes, brow furrowing. Here she was, a wet hen again, yet she never looked more stunning, with laughter on her lips and joy in her eyes. He sent her a sultry look and the laughter died in an instant. He scooped her into his arms, ignoring the sensation of soaked clothes pressed into his skin. He honestly didn't care right now and Marinette wasn't complaining either.

Their eyes met and the world stopped. Adrien held his breath, mesmerized with the sapphires boring into him. He drowned in them completely as Marinette closed the space between them.

Nothing existed anymore, just her warmth cradled in his arms, just her scent filling his lungs, just the taste of strawberries on her lips.

When he felt the pressure lessening, he gripped her tighter and gave chase, refusing to part even for a second. Their lips moved softly and tentatively against each other, but neither of them minded the clumsy kiss. It was theirs, finally happening, and he wouldn't have it any other way.

Thunder rolled in the distance as they finally parted. Adrien pressed his forehead to hers, tenderly pecking at her nose.

'That was… electrifying,' he smiled as a lightning flickered over the horizon. He felt her breath on his face and briefly wondered how soon the kissing etiquette allowed to dive for another one.

'Goof,' Marinette messed his hair causing a cascade of squelchy droplets.

'Your goof,' he purred against her lips.

'Mine,' she whispered back, before giving him a taste of the strawberries again.

It took two yelling kwamis and the end of the rain to get them apart. Adrien spent the next three days in bed with a nasty cold. But he still thought it was worth it.

* * *

 _AN: You absolutely have to tell me what you think! Now go to the comment box!_

 _About the apple trees - the flower design on Marinette's t-shirt, purse and various other items looks very much like an apple blossom as far as I'm concerned. I think it can also be peach blossom, but I'm not sure, that's why I went with apples._

 _Three chapters left in this fic, and I am both sad and proud. Thank you for reading. If everything goes well, prepare for TWO updates tomorrow!_

 _Visit me on a perditaalottachocolate-blog . tumblr . com . I post this AdrinetteApril fic there, as well as snippets of my other works and my doodles (check out the tags "perdita writes" "perdita draws" and "april weather art")._ _I also share quite a lot of miraculous stuff._


	28. Disguises

_AN: Confession time - yes the kiss in the rain was an intentional reference to the umbrella scene ^_^ - or rather to both umbrella scenes, the canon one, and the one from chapter 18 of this story._

 _Also I got some comments saying, that the design on Marinette's t-shirt is a reference to sakura cherry blossoms. This may be the case, although Marinette is half Chinese, not half Japanese. Sakura cherry blossom in Japanese tradition represent life, death and renewal. Wild apple blossoms in Chinese tradition represent female beauty. Pick what you like ;)_

 _Anyway sakura cherry orchards are probably even more difficult to find in Paris than apple ones, but this apple design thing is only my headcanon. I just wanted to clear this up._

* * *

 **Day 28. Disguises**

 _Ding-dong! Ding-dong!_

'Marinette, can you get the door?' she heard her mother's voice from the kitchen. 'I'm in the middle of something.'

Marinette ran down the stairs, knowing full well who was waiting in the corridor. Tonight was another date night.

'Hi, Adri- ,' she swung the door open and faltered mid word, eyeing the newcomer.

Jet black hair stood out at strange angles from his head. His eyes were hidden behind dark glasses with yellow frames. The oversized rainbow sweater looked ready for little ponies to move in. Pale gray slacks seemed oddly normal in this set, but they ended at ankle high blue boots.

'Hi, Adrien! Come on in,' Marinette's mother called from behind the girl. 'Nice to see you, dear!'

'And there goes my disguise,' the boy sighed and stepped inside.

Marinette finally found her voice. 'Tha- that's your disguise for the movies?'

'Yeah?' he inspected his clothes. 'Is there a problem?'

She rolled her eyes. 'Couldn't you have disguised less conspicuous?'

'What do you mean?' he frowned. 'I chose everything to be as far from my normal look as possible.'

'You clearly forgot about fake mustache then,' she muttered under her breath.

'You think mustache would look good on me?' Adrien perked up.

'Totally,' Marinette suppressed a snort, 'and whiskers even better. Come on, rainbow boy, let's see if I can make you stand out less than that,' she motioned him to get upstairs.

'Marinette, remember about the door, hon,' Sabine called from the kitchen.

'Yes, mom,' she huffed not even trying to hide her annoyance. Just a little relationship status adjustment and suddenly every time Adrien visited she had to suffer draughts thanks to the "open door policy".

'Your father seriously let you go out like this?' Marinette asked going through the contents of her wardrobe in search of ideas how to tone down Adrien's look.

'He… um… he was busy?'

'And Nathalie was busy too?'

'Well… she said I looked cheerful,' he tapped his lip thoughtfully. 'You think she might have been joking?'

'Oh, definitely not,' Marinette settled herself on his lap and kissed his nose. 'You look very cheerful, but also very, very… eye-catching.'

'That's not good then.'

'Not when we want to watch a movie without anyone noticing us, no,' she agreed.

'Are you sure you want to go to the movies?' Adrien asked. 'It seems so… mundane.'

Marinette giggled standing up to get her own disguise. 'We've had a few pretty spectacular dates, but there's nothing wrong with normal stuff.'

'I guess,' the boy brightened up. 'Hey, we had ice cream at André's, that basically makes us engaged,' he wiggled his brows playfully.

'Dork,' Marinette threw a pillow at him.

Soon both in their disguises they were heading towards the theater. Adrien refused to leave the offensive rainbow sweater behind, but at least Marinette was able to persuade him to take off the yellow sunglasses. They would be extremely impractical in the evening and in a dark room. He kept the black wig, but let her comb it so that it looked like normal hair, until someone got really close. The girl herself wasn't disguised much, but she wasn't the one easily recognizable. She just let her hair down and hid her head under a pink beanie. The knee length dress she was wearing was cute, but not really standing out, as were her usual ballerinas.

'I can't believe you want to see a movie about superheroes,' Marinette shook her head as they were nearing their destination, strolling at a leisurely pace in the late April sun.

'Why?' Adrien knitted his brows.

'You _are_ a superhero,' she pointed out.

'So?' he shrugged. 'Besides, they aren't all superheroes. Thor is a god,' he countered.

'I'm a god too,' Plagg piped in from Adrien's pocket. 'And I want to see it.'

'Yeah, right,' the boy scoffed. 'You just want the cheesy popcorn.'

'You got a problem with that?' the pocket asked pugnaciously.

'Not at all,' the boy chuckled. 'You can have as much as you want. Hey, I look weird with black hair and fair brows,' he noticed, catching their reflection in a shopping window.

'Better than in a helmet,' Plagg supplied helpfully earning a giggle from Marinette.

'Hey, don't dis on the helmet,' Adrien pouted mockingly. 'I looked fabulous,' he added with a wink. 'Almost as good as Marinette in a towel hat.'

'That's true, you know' the girl confirmed. 'Towels are just my thing,' she chuckled.

Soon the playful banter died out as they entered the theater and bought tickets. Adrien settled on a couch near the entrance with their snacks (mostly Plagg's snacks anyway), while Marinette decided to visit the restroom before the movie would start.

She was just heading back, her thoughts fully occupied with her dorky boyfriend, when she stumbled. She only registered the foot stuck in her way, when she already landed on all fours on the floor. There was a flash of a camera and a telltale sound of someone taking pictures.

'Well, well, well,' she heard the distinctive nasal screech behind her, 'I'll be damned if this isn't **Adrien Agreste's** ex girlfriend. What are you doing here, Mademoiselle Disaster? Going to the movies by yourself, like the total loser you are?'

Marinette set her jaw and looked up into Chloé's icy stare.

* * *

 _AN: Two more chapters to go, guys... One will be up later today!_

 _I'd love to know what you think of this one? Your comments make me so happy!_

 _There's art for this chapter, if you're curious how Adrien's disguise looked like:_ _perditaalottachocolate-blog . tumblr . com [slash] post [slash] 173418808248 [slash] april-weather-28-art_

 _A huge thank you to Rem for beta reading this chapter! You're an angel to find the time for me in your schedule!_

 _Visit me on perditaalottachocolate-blog . tumblr com . I post this AdrinetteApril fic there, as well as snippets of my other works and my doodles (check out the tags "perdita writes" "perdita draws" and "april weather art"). I also share quite a lot of miraculous stuff._


	29. The Wall

_Author's Note: Can you believe this is almost over? Because I can't. Chapter 29 - just for you… In case you haven't noticed, this is a second update today. Make sure to read the previous chapter if you haven't because this one picks up where that one ended._

* * *

 **Day 29. The Wall**

There was no way to miss the commotion in the theater lobby. Someone called Adrien's name, raising their voice high, so that it could be heard by more people. The boy looked around panicky, expecting to find his cover blown and crazed fans rushing to greet him. But no one was. Instead people were heading towards the source of the voice, the Agreste name spilling from their lips.

Adrien exhaled in relief. His disguise was working, he hadn't been recognized. Now he just needed to calm down and wait for Marinette. She was taking very long to return from the restroom. Extremely long. Adrien was aware of the existence of "girl stuff" that happened sometimes and made them spend a bit longer in bathrooms and such. But even with those standards employed he was beginning to worry if she would make it before the movie would start.

In the meantime the crowd on the other end of the lobby grew and he still could pick up his name from time to time. Now that he listened more carefully though, he definitely could hear people ranting in an unpleasantly familiar shrill. And when he caught the word "girlfriend" a few times accompanied by "Adrien's", a heavy ball of anxiety settled in the pit of his stomach. With a silent nod to Plagg, who buried deeper in his sweater, he headed for the crowd.

As he got nearer he could identify the familiar voice. Chloé. He should have known.

'How can you even show your sorry butt here, you pathetic loser,' the blonde brat ranted. 'If I were you I would have stayed in that hole you call home.'

'So is that Adrien's girlfriend or not?' Someone in the crowd prodded Chloé and she turned, her face twisted in an offended scowl at stealing her show.

' **Ex** girlfriend,' she spat. 'Thankfully Adrien finally saw reason and ended things with her.'

'They looked pretty chummy in those pictures a while ago,' the person wasn't giving up easily.

'Well they are not any more,' Chloé snarled. 'I've made sure of that. She doesn't deserve someone like Adrien.'

He heard enough for the anxiety ball to rise to his throat. Marinette must have been on the other end of this mess. With a little bit of elbow work Adrien managed to push far enough to see what was happening.

His girlfriend was backed against the wall, with Chloé and a few other people blocking her way out. Even though she was untransformed she took the battle stance, ready to respond to any attack that might come. He'd seen Ladybug in this position so many times he had to blink to make sure she wasn't wearing her spots now. Glamour must have been a very powerful kind of magic, if even Chloé missed that her idol stood in front of her in flesh and blood.

Marinette's eyes flickered over the audience. Adrien immediately recognized she was looking for a solution. She caught his gaze and shook her head barely visibly in silent denial, ordering him to stay out of it. He got the message. If their relationship was to remain secret, like he had insisted, he couldn't have been spotted there. That's why she didn't run, didn't come to him. She didn't want to draw attention to her companion, once Chloé got her. Even outside of the suits Marinette did everything in her power to protect him, even at the price of humiliation by Chloé's hand.

But as her partner he could also see that her patience was growing thin by the second. It took one more jab and she finally responded.

'Leave me alone, Chloé,' Marinette drawled, voice low and strong, 'you got what you wanted, you have no business here.'

Adrien knew Marinette could be mean when she wanted to. Right now she was probably employing all of Ladybug's strength and experience not to snarl at Chloé. With all the awful things the blonde had said, she still remained calm. But Chloé was Chloé, she went for the throat and never backed out unless threatened into submission. She was also blind to warning signs until they hit her over the head, usually with an akumatized hand.

'I'm not done with you yet, Dupain-Cheng,' Chloé replied, eyeing Marinette with disdain. 'I need to make sure you're never going to get near Adrien again.'

The guttural sound that escaped Marinette's throat didn't bode well for this face off, but she caught his eye and seemed to keep herself in check. She exhaled slowly. Her features relaxed. She was doing this for him, he knew, but instead of gratitude he felt the wave of shame and regret. Shame that once again she went with his decision and the consequences affected her much more than him. Regret, that he couldn't stand by her side to help her through it. His thoughts ran to the painful moment when Marinette ended their fake dating. He recalled what each of them had to go through alone and how he hated himself for it.

Never again, he thought.

'That's enough, Chloé,' he called from his place at the back of the crowd. 'Show's over, people. Go somewhere else,' he announced once the audience turned to him.

'Says who?' someone snarled.

'Says me,' Adrien replied calmly. 'Now move, before I call the police. You're harassing that girl.'

He used the attention he got to push through the crowd until he got to Marinette. She looked confused but relieved, the whole ordeal clearly took a lot of nerves.

'Okay?' he asked, putting a hand on her shoulder.

'I am now,' she sent him a weak smile, 'but you shouldn't do this. I could handle it just fine.'

'I'm sure you could,' Adrien smiled back at her, 'but I don't want you to.'

'Excuse you,' he heard Chloé's voice and felt the jab of her manicured finger in his back. 'Who do you think you are, threatening me with calling the police?'

Adrien turned slowly sending her a cold look. She gasped, hand covering her mouth.

'Adrikins!' the blonde shrieked, 'What are you doing here?'

'I'm with Marinette,' he stated, putting an arm around his girlfriend's shoulder. 'We're on a date, not that this is any of your business.'

'A d-date?' Chloé looked between them. 'Don't be ridiculous. You broke up.'

'Again, not your business, Chloé, but Marinette and I are dating,' he repeated, noticing a few of people behind her took their phones out. He sighed. That was what he was worried about, but he still had to do the right thing. He felt Marinette's hand in his, squeezing his fingers encouragingly. Together, that's how they always got out of trouble.

Chloé apparently decided to ignore those bits of reality that didn't align with her vision. 'What are you even wearing,' she lamented instead as she assessed his attire. 'Did she made you do this?'

' _She_ is standing right here,' he retorted coldly, although her stubbornness was getting to him, stirring the long forgotten anger, 'and her name is Marinette. As to your question, no, Marinette didn't make me do this. I put it on myself, because we wanted to have a peaceful evening together, which thanks to you and all the people too eager to take pictures, is getting increasingly difficult.'

Chloé blinked, processing all the information that ruined her world. 'Don't be ridiculous,' she finally scoffed.'I'll go to this movie with you. You only had to ask.'

She reached out and took the wig from his head revealing his trademark blonde hairdo, now ruffled, but still recognizable. If there had been any doubts as to his identity, they were gone now. Cameras flashed in his eyes.

'Will you just stop that!?' Marinette yelled and the flashing ceased. 'Would _you_ like someone to take pictures of you in private situation and then post it everywhere they please?' She took a step away from him and addressed the crowd. 'Would _you_ like a camera shoved in your face while you're eating, walking, dancing? How about cuddling or kissing? On a date with someone important to you?'

She was replied by an uncertain choir of "no"s and "not really"s and some feet shuffling.

'Then leave him alone,' she added. 'Leave us alone.'

'You leave him alone, Dupain-Cheng!' Chloé barked at the girl. 'You… you… cling to him like leech! You're so stupid you don't even know how to take a hint!'

'How to take a hint?' Adrien bursted out, startling them both, 'Are you kidding me, Chloé?'

'Well, she's obviously delusional if she thinks she can be your girlfriend, Adrikins,' Chloé ranted.

'She _is_ my girlfriend,' he countered, taking Marinette's hand in his and kissing it.

'This is ridiculous!' the blonde girl huffed. 'Are you blind? She's nobody, just some bakery girl, with no money, no connections, no fashion sense, nothing.'

'She is everything you secretly want to be, Chloé,' Adrien drawled, 'and she's everything to me. So you either get over it and start treating her like she deserves to be treated, or-

'Or what?!' she snapped.

'Or I don't want you in my life anymore,' he finished lowering his voice to a whisper, so that only her and Marinette would hear him.

Chloé choked and spluttered. 'What?'

'You heard me,' he drawled, glaring at the blonde, 'Marinette deserves to be treated like the wonderful girl she is. She's my girlfriend. I love her and I'm gonna marry her someday-' the words rolled off his tongue before he could stop himself.

The remaining crowd gasped in unison.

Next to him Marinette face-palmed with a groan.

In his pocket Plagg chuckled, undoubtedly at the next day's headlines.

And Chloé fell silent, not taking her eyes off him.

'Oh my god, you're serious,' she finally whispered, shock twisting her face for a split of a second.

'Chloé, he was obviously exaggerating to get the point across,' Marinette supplied.

'No, he's not,' Chloé retorted. 'I've known him almost my whole life, I know when he's dead serious about something,' she added in a condescending tone.

She eyed Marinette up and down as if she saw her for the very first time in her life. Then her gaze traveled to him again, giving him the same treatment.

'You're serious,' she repeated. 'Aren't you?'

* * *

 _AN: Aaaaand, I've caught up to the prompts! Yay! ONE CHAPTER LEFT IN THIS STORY. I'm so excited!_

 _What do you say about this one? I will admit the prompt was very mysterious_

 _An enormous thank you to Rem for beta reading this chapter and for brainstorming with me!_


	30. Rewrite

_Author's Note: I feel like I've cheated a bit and I'm sorry. But I had only this last chapter and too many things to tie up and it still ended up over 3k words long. I hope you won't be disappointed, but this idea came to me almost at the beginning of the month (it's in my notebook right after fragments of chapter 6) and just waited for the story to come to this moment :)_

 _Anyway, I can't believe I've made it, and I was able to finish this on time! Once again thank you all for your support, for your amazing comments, kudos, bookmarks and subscriptions._ _You made me feel really good about my writing._

 _This is the most appreciated story I've written, with more than 37,5k hits on all of the chapters, 205 follows, 118 favs, 265 reviews. I can't even count all the likes it got on tumblr, but for each and every one of these things - THANK YOU!_

* * *

 **Day 30. Rewrite**

 _ **6 years later**_

The concert venue was full to the brim, but their part of the VIP sector was comfortably empty. They had a whole box just for the seven of them, with plush chairs, bar access and their own waitress. Well, _had_ one waitress.

'Congratulations, Chloé,' Alya smiled sourly, 'you almost didn't offend that girl down the hall.'

'Hush, it wasn't my fault,' the blonde grumbled. 'Besides, I was trying to be nice.'

'Sure, that's why she burst into tears,' the Ladyblogger supplied helpfully.

'Well, how was I supposed to know she'd react like that to a little bit of constructive criticism,' Chloé pouted.

'I think,' Marinette pipped in to prevent this to turn into a full blown row, 'that you have to work on the constructive part, before you give advice next time, Chlo,' she offered with a small smile.

'I suppose I can do that,' Chloé sighed in defeat. 'Anyway, I'm thirsty. Where are our boys with the drinks?'

'Probably looking for something without spit in it,' Alya chuckled, earning an unamused stare from both Chloé and Marinette.

'At least you get to watch it with your boys,' Kagami said from the front seat. She was already there when they got to the box. She came earlier to watch the rehearsals and wish Luka good luck.

'And you're the lucky girl whose boyfriend gets to play with Jagged,' Marinette exclaimed. 'That's really exciting! I'd be thrilled if I were you.'

Something unreadable flashed in Kagami's eyes, before she cracked a smile. 'It is pretty exciting,' she admitted. 'Although it loses its charm after a while. I wish he'd be here with us today, not on stage.'

'But he's a rising star!' Alya joined them. 'And so are you.'

Kagami snorted. 'Yeah, right.'

'Now wait,' the blogger held her hand. 'Getting into the French Olympic fencing team is at least as impressive as getting to rock and roll with a legend of rock, right? You're basically our local power couple.'

The other girls giggled in unison at Kagami's flustered look.

Marinette thought that all of them were - in a way - halves of power couples. Alya's _Ladyblog_ was never more popular, making her practically an institution when it came to heroes. Nino's been getting a lot of attention with his new film projects. Chloé was training to take over her father's hotel empire, with Nathaniel slowly working for his place in animation business with her silent support. Kagami and Luka were already recognizable. Only her and Adrien somehow managed to avoid the spotlight, guarding their privacy despite Adrien's earlier teenage heartthrob status, but on the other hand there was probably no more popular power couple than Ladybug and Chat Noir, not that she could point that out to her friends.

'So,' Kagami's voice brought her back from her musings. 'Are you going to show us?'

Marinette raised her eyes at them. Her three friends were staring at her intently.

'What?' she asked.

'M, you've been keeping your left hand in that pocket all evening,' Chloé pointed out. 'Either you've had an awful manicure, and we both know that's not possible, since I was the one to recommend Jean-Marie to you-'

'Not the point, Chlo,' Alya interrupted.

'-Or Adrien finally popped the question,' Chloé finished glaring daggers at Alya.

'Well?' The redhead raised a brow at Marinette, 'Did he?'

Marinette smiled and nodded shyly. Getting engaged at the age of twenty seemed a bit old fashioned, but they were a couple for 6 years, so it might have been considered justified.

'He did!' Alya squealled. 'Show us! Show us!' She started jumping up and down like a five year old.

'Show us! Show us!' Nathaniel parroted from the entrance. 'Whatever Marinette's is showing I want to see it,' he jested earning a nudge and an eye-roll from Chloé.

'What is Nettie showing?' Nino followed with a tray full of drinks.

'The engagement ring,' Alya chirped excitedly.

'Ooooh,' her boyfriend winked at Marinette. 'Have you told them the whole story?'

'What story?' the girls cried.

'Ah, I take that as a no,' Nino put the tray down. 'Sorry,' he said sheepishly.

'I see you've been holding out on us, M,' Alya pouted. 'Come on, girl, we want the full version.'

Marinette sighed. She was hoping Adrien would be there for this, so that they could share the news together. His story would surely be more colorful. Speaking of her fiancee, there was still a shortage of gorgeous green-eyed blondes in the box.

'Wait, where's Adrien?' she swept her gaze over the space as if it was possible for an almost two meter high man to hide in plain sight.

Kagami and Nino exchanged nervous looks.

'Heeee... went toooo... wish Luka good luck?' Nino didn't sound very convincing, but Nathaniel nodded vigorously. Only Kagami's sly smile seemed out of place.

'Don't worry,' Alya waved her hand dismissively. 'He'll be back on time. Now I want to see that ring and hear how Sunshine proposed!'

Marinette removed her left hand from her pocket and raised it to show the stunning piece of jewelry Adrien had commissioned just for her. Her companions whistled in appreciation.

The ring was subtle, but unique, based in design on apple blossoms, with pink and white diamonds set in white gold. It was the most beautiful thing Marinette had seen, and the knowledge it was crafted specifically for her still made her feel dizzy.

'So, um… you know how it wasn't raining for the whole week?' Marinette asked, beginning her story. 'But Adrien was stubbornly carrying his umbrella everywhere, despite the forecasts,' she had been a bit annoyed that he dragged the thing with him as if it was the most precious item in the world. Now she knew that it had been. 'Anyway, it finally rained yesterday, and of course I got caught up in the biggest shower and I didn't have my umbrella.'

'100% genuine Marinette,' Alya snickered while the rest of her friends nodded in confirmation.

'Thanks,' she grumbled. 'Well, here comes my knight with his shining umbrella to pick me up from classes,' Marinette continued, 'but instead of opening it he presses it into my own hands. I thought it was some sort of a joke, but he was very insistent. So…' she suspended her voice, earning a groan from her audience, 'I finally opened it. The ring was attached inside on a red string and it slid in front of my eyes. When I looked at Adrien, he was kneeling down with that sunshine smile of his and here I am, engaged,' she sighed blissfully.

There was much more to it than she told, but some things, some meanings, should remain secret, known only to the two of them. She knew that those precious memories would warm her heart in years to come.

'Well,' Chloé clicked her tongue, 'only Adrien could think of something as sappy as this scenario.'

'Damn, he set the bar punishingly high,' Nathaniel added, appreciation lining his voice.

'Then better start thinking, Kutzberg,' his girlfriend suggested with a self-satisfied smirk, before turning back to Marinette 'You know, if you want to hold the reception in Le Grand, I'd be more than happy to give you a special price.'

'Thanks Chlo, I really appreciate the offer, but we already have a location in mind.' Marinette's fingers grazed over the ring, smiling both in recollection and in anticipation.

'Sure,' the girl shrugged. 'Have you picked a date?'

Marinette blinked at her, shaking off the pleasant memories. 'Don't worry,' she replied smugly. 'You will know when you get your invitations. Now where the hell is Adrien?' she huffed. The lights in the hall started to go out. The concert was about to begin.

'Relax, girl,' Kagami nudged her playfully. 'You'll see him in a minute,' she added and the way she said it made Marinette think that she had something else in mind.

'It's not like you're not spending every minute you can with him,' Chloé shrugged taking her seat next to Nathaniel. 'Cut him some slack, M.'

'I probably should,' Marinette bit the inside of her cheek, 'but with Uni and all the commissions from Jagged I am getting we barely see each other,' she complained.

'There, there,' Alya patted her knee. 'It's never going to be like in collège again,' she pointed out.

The box and the rest of the concert hall went dark as the last of the lights went out, leaving only the soft lamps around the stage visible.

Marinette looked around nervously, turning to the door and biting her nails, 'He'll miss it,' she complained.

'His loss,' Kagami whispered. 'Now shut up and watch.'

They heard the drums delivering a rhythm. Then a guitar started playing and other instruments joined in.

'Are you ready?' a deep voice called in the darkness.

'Yeeees!' the audience replied.

'Sorry, can't hear ya,' the voice replied. 'Are! You! Ready!?'

'YEEEEEEESSSS!' the audience roared.

'That's fantastic, cause so are we!' The voice yelled back.

The curtains slid to the sides revealing the band. Kagami perked up seeing Luka next to the percussion, with his fingers dancing over the strings.

Jagged Stone stepped to the middle of the stage. 'HELLO, PARIS!' he bellowed.

'HELLO, JAGGED!' the crowd cheered.

'It's damn great to be here tonight,' Jagged murmured, plucking a few tones out of his guitar. 'And you're lucky to be here, because we have a few surprises just for you,' he lowered his voice feigning a confidential whisper.

The audience applauded as after a joyful "One-two, one-two-three-four" he began his first song. It was one of Marinette's favorites but she couldn't fully enjoy the show, worrying over her wayward fiance and his whereabouts. Her friends seemed unconcerned that he went AWOL, which was also suspicious. She fidgeted nervously in her seat, earning a glare from Alya above the rim of her glasses.

'Sorry,' she mouthed and discreetly fished out her phone to check for any messages from Adrien. She shot him a quick text, when she felt Alya nudging her to draw her attention. The girl nodded towards the stage. Luka was waving at them with a large grin. Kagami blew him a kiss and his grin widened. The crowds awed in unison and Jagged gave his support guitarist a thumb up. Then he turned to the audience.

'Now I'd like to welcome on stage a very special person,' Jagged announced, smiling wickedly. 'This was supposed to be a favor, but I guess I got the better side of the bargain as I'm getting a whole new number out of this,' he laughed. 'This however won't be my song. My friend Jason agreed for us to use his old piece and rewrite it to our needs a bit. Thanks, bud, wherever you are playing today!' He waved in the audience's direction. 'As to my guest. He's here to sing to a friend of mine and a person important to him,' he suspended his voice and the crowd stirred in anticipation.

A drumroll signaled the arrival of a white piano, that slid to the stage on a movable platform, but the pianist stayed hidden behind the bulk of his instrument. When the drumroll switched into the backbeat of the next song, Jagged raised a hand.

'You all know him!' he shouted, 'You all smelled like him! Without further ado please welcome - Mr. Radiant - Carefree - Dreamy - '

The platform rotated to the looped backbeat of the intro, revealing a figure dressed in white from head to toe sitting on the bench. His golden hair caught light form the reflectors.

' _\- ADRIEN AGRESTE!'_ Jagged roared and the crowd exploded in excitement.

Marinette sat with her mouth agape, staring at the introduced guest, as the audience cheered. She wasn't sure her eyes weren't deceiving her. 'Is that- ?' she rasped.

'Yup,' Kagami and Nino beamed at her. 'Surprise!'

Marinette gulped and scooted closer to the edge of their box. Adrien waved at the roaring crowds, signaling for them to tone it down.

'This is for you, M,' he murmured into the microphone looking straight at her and winking. Then he put his fingers on the keys and the piano tones joined the rest of the instruments as the song finally started.

There were hundreds of people in the concert hall, but Marinette had no doubt he played for her and her only. Like that first time over the phone, and then during their talks. Even if she wasn't next to him, the tones were created with her in mind and she could feel them with every bit of her soul.

Then she was surprised for the second time, as instead of Jagged's vocal, she heard Adrien's strong yet soft voice, singing to his own accompaniment.

 _Love is where this begins, Thank you for letting me in_

 _I've never had to pretend, You've always known who I am_

 _And I know my life is better because you're a part of it_

 _I know without you by my side that I would be different_

Jagged stood next to the piano grinning, as he played the second line of the melody on his guitar, with Luka following his lead. The backing vocalists supplied a perfect background for Adrien's performance. The song was arranged in such way that the band didn't overshadow the pianist and lead vocalist, but complimented him harmoniously.

 _Thank you for all of your trust, Thank you for not giving up_

 _Thank you for holding my hand, I've always known where you stand_

 _As I feel my life is better, So is the world we're living in_

Marinette noticed that Adrien's voice got louder and his smile widened as he was nearing the end of the stanza. Something was up. He caught her eye and sang:

 _I'm thankful for the time I spent_

He suspended his voice for a second, the band pausing with him...

 _With my_ _ **just a friend**_ _friend_

...he finished with a grin.

She burst into laughter as a few of her friends groaned at the terrible line. Only Adrien would rewrite a whole number, and while performing it next to Jagged Stone, would dare to slip a personal joke inside. But then they all saw Jagged and Luka high fived. So this was a bigger scheme! Marinette couldn't help but to cackle, at how the tables had turned. The line that once had felt so offensive, turned into the greatest inside joke of their lives. She put a hand on her heart and gestured to her fiance, who nodded in acknowledgement.

She fell back to her seat and drowned in the song rewritten with her in mind. It was a perfect summary of their relationship, fitting for another anniversary they just celebrated.

 _Thank you for calling me out, Thank you for waking me up_

 _Thank you for breaking it down, Thank you for choosing us_

 _Thank you for all you're about, Thank you for lifting me up_

 _Thank you for keeping me grounded, And being here now_

 _My life is better, Because you're a part of it_

 _I know without you by my side, That I would be different_

 _Yes I feel my life is better, And so is the world we're livin' in_

 _I'm thankful for the time I spent, With my just a friend_

Those six years weren't perfect, but rather more like the April weather that started it all. There were happy moments of sunshine and then there were also showers, storms and cloudbursts. Her and Adrien had their ups and downs, their strong characters clashing and not always eager to look for compromises. She had her faults and so had he, the jealousy being one of their biggest problems. Trying moments came with changing schools and choosing different educational paths. With choices the other one disagreed with. With bad days and words said in anger. But somehow they always knew how to put it back together, how to forgive and learn from their mistakes. How to trust and love unconditionally, but without losing themselves. Every crisis only made their relationship stronger and even if they were only twenty, they both knew what they wanted from life, and that they wanted to spend the rest of it together. They were well aware troubles would come, yet they were ready to face them hand in hand. After all they had faced the worst nightmares and came victorious. Whatever life would throw at them, they would prevail.

Because, Marinette thought, despite all their differences the love they shared was something almost palpable, something she felt surrounding her all the time. In moments like this, when Adrien pulled another surprising stunt, sweeping her of her feet. And in quiet mundane matters, like bringing her an umbrella when it was raining, or calling to wake her up for an important test. Yes, she said to herself, her life was better because Adrien was a part of it and she was thankful for every second spent with him. Her not perfect fiancé couldn't have chosen a more perfect song.

When the melody came to an end Adrien stood up and bowed to the booming applause from the audience. Jagged launched himself at the boy and trapped him in a bear hug, which Adrien reluctantly returned, before withdrawing and shaking his hand.

'Adrien Agreste, people!' Jagged cried again and the audience began to applaud with a double force. 'I'm trying to convince him to join our merry band,' he waved to the rest of his musicians. 'What do you think?'

He was replied with the cacophony of sounds drawn from every instrument on stage and made into a little dance of its own. When the roar from the band and the crowd finally died out, Jagged pulled his fingers from his ears and patted Adrien over his shoulder. 'You're hired,' he winked. 'Now go to your 'just a friend'. I believe you are missed. Adrien Agreste - ladies and gentlemen!' he waved escorting the pianist to the backstage and returning for the rest of the concert.

It took half a song for Adrien to finally reach their box. Marinette was waiting impatiently in the corridor. She pulled him in for a fierce kiss before he had time to do anything, but he was quick to reply in kind.

'You're an unbelievable dork,' she murmured as they parted for air.

'But I'm your dork,' Adrien purred, diving in for a another kiss.

Marinette pressed her forehead to his. 'Thank you,' she whispered against his lips.

'For kissing you?'

'For the song, the ring and the wonderful engagement,' she sighed. 'I can't believe I'm so lucky.'

'Meh,' he shrugged. 'Anything for a good friend.'

Marinette giggled and swatted him playfully. 'We're putting this on our invitations, aren't we?'

'Sure thing,' he laughed, wrapping his arms tightly around her and burying his nose in her hair. 'Please don't be mad,' he said, voice uncertain, 'but I've already booked a venue. I wanted to be sure it would be available.'

'Just tell me where and when,' Marinette pressed her cheek to his chest, listening to the strong rhythm of his heart, her favorite tune, 'and I'll be there.'

'The apple orchard, next April.'

She smiled to herself hearing the heartbeat speeding up in anticipation. Maybe he wasn't perfect, but definitely not for the lack of trying.

'It's a date,' Marinette murmured feeling him smiling against her hair.

* * *

 _AN: Adrien performed Jason Mraz's "Best Friend" xD it's a really nice song!_

 _And this is how this story ends. Once again thank you for reading. I'd love to hear what you think of this chapter and of the whole story now that it's out._

 _I won't pretend it wasn't difficult to write it to fit the prompts and still have a coherent plot. Did I succeed? Could I do this better? Probably, if I had more time instead of writing from day to day (plus a 3-day hospital visit and being sick for a few days). You have to bear in mind all the circumstances that made this fic what it is now._

 _I want to thank my beta Remasa for her help and support throughout this whole month. Thank you for listening to my rants, for all the good ideas and suggestions, and for all the commas you added here xD_

 _What's next? I'm taking a small break but I will do what I can to get you a new Adrien centric story for Adrien Appreciation Week at wearemiraculous over tumblr, which starts on May 6th. And then? Who knows. But I'm gonna keep writing for sure, so follow me if you want to read more of my stories!_

 _Thank you for the lovely adventure!_


	31. House Call

_Author's Note: No. This is not a mistake. 30 chapters of "April Weather" make a completed story. But now there's more – I really enjoyed writing in that universe, so I wrote two drabbles expanding this fic, and possibly I might write some more in the future. As many of you followed or faved the original story, I've decided to post those drabbles as next chapters of "April Weather", so that you would get the chance to read them._

 _So without further ado, here's "More April Weather". Enjoy!_

 _This takes place after Chapter 27 "First Kiss"_

* * *

 **31\. House Call**

'Ehhh…' Adrien sighed lying on his left side.

'Ahhhh…' he breathed rolling onto his back.

'Ehhh…' he uttered turning to his right side.

This was the third day of his stay at home, after he was reckless enough to get drenched in the rain and consequently got sick. He was supposed to drink lots of fluids, eat chicken brew, and was put on bed rest. At first he wasn't complaining - he really had been feeling awful, with spikes of fever, dizziness and shivers. But two days of this treatment left him utterly bored and he felt that the third day would finally drive him up the wall.

Marinette brought him homework twice, but Nathalie refused to let her in.

'Doctor's orders,' she stated. 'You don't want to get your girlfriend sick, do you?' she asked, a ghost of a smile dancing on her lips at the mention of their freshly updated relationship status.

He had no reply to that. He could argue that Marinette had gotten as drenched as he had, and considering the activity they had been partaking in while getting wet, if Marinette could get sick like him, she would already have.

The boy broke into a fit of giggles when a thought hit him.

Plagg flew out of his trash can and eyed him in confusion. 'The fever is spiking?'

'I caught a bug while kissing a bug,' Adrien announced panting and wiped a tear from his eye.

The kwami snickered goodnaturedly. 'Yup, you're delirious again.'

'Awww, come on, Plagg,' the boy complained. 'I'm bored and I miss Marinette.'

Exchanging texts wasn't the same as being with her. And the newly established level of intimacy between them meant that he was three days behind on kisses and cuddles. He wasn't sure how much more of this fast he could take, before he would get Marinette-starved to the point of going nuts.

'Luckily for you, your misery is over,' the little cat replied cripticaly.

'Plagg, I don't want another lecture on the history of camembert!' Adrien whined flopping onto the pillows.

'Okay, first - rude,' the kwami chided. 'And second, just look to your window, kid.'

The boy did as he was told and gasped. Ladybug was hanging upside down behind one of the panels. Her pigtails bobbed in the wind. She waved at him shyly and sent him a bright smile. Adrien returned the gestures before reaching for the remote and opening the window.

As she dropped inside his room, he quickly sat up and ran his fingers through his messy hair in vain attempt to smooth the bedhead he had managed to achieve. He decided to ignore Plagg's snickers.

Ladybug stood for a moment, locked in place, uncertain what to do. She blushed when her gaze swept over his figure on the bed and Adrien suddenly felt extremely self conscious. She strolled to him, taking a seat on the side and reaching for his hand.

This was strange, he thought. As Adrien he had been close to Marinette for a while, lately reaching a few milestones. As Chat Noir he now shared a similar level of intimacy with Ladybug. But he somehow still had troubles about this particular side of their relationship - with him a civilian and her behind the mask. While out of suit he felt a bit exposed in the heroine's presence. Besides their previous encounters as Ladybug and Adrien each time had brought significant changes to their relationship. He would be lying if he said that didn't take its toll.

Yeah, it felt weird, but here she was - his supergirlfriend, watching him expectantly and brushing her fingers over his hand.

'So…,' Adrien cleared his throat, 'since when does the brave heroine of Paris pay house calls to sick citizens?'

Ladybug's blush deepened. She looked at him from under her dark lashes, the blue stare sending his heart into a step dance.

'Since they are dating her and she is missing them like crazy,' she admitted coyly. 'Nathalie wouldn't let me in as Marinette again.'

'I know,' he sighed. 'I'm still not sure you should be here. I would hate myself if you got sick because of me,' he added squeezing her hand.

'You got sick because of me,' the girl countered. 'Besides, Tikki said I won't get sick when I'm like this,' she gestured to the suit. 'And- ,' she shyly dropped her gaze to their joined hands.

'And?' he echoed, curious what had her suddenly so flustered.

'The open door policy is no fun,' she complained.

'No fun?'

That was an understatement of the year. It was annoying, embarrassing, and - yeah - effectively prevented them from having a certain kind of fun. But why was she talking about it now?

Ladybug shook her head in reply to his question and climbed to the bed on all fours. 'Not when I want to do this…'

She leaned in and planted a chaste kiss on his cheek. Adrien felt his pulse quickening.

'And this…'

Ladybug tilted her head and kissed the corner of his mouth. He inhaled sharply.

'And this…' she breathed against his lips and wiped the distance between them, cradling his cheeks with her hands.

Adrien reluctantly pulled her into his lap and wrapped his arms around her waist, not for a moment breaking from the soft, leisurely kiss.

'How do you feel?' Ladybug whispered when they finally parted.

He arched his brow meaningfully, satisfied to feel the heat of her face against his own. 'Surprisingly, a lot better,' he murmured. He pulled her closer and hugged thoroughly, to compensate for all those days they'd been apart.

'What if someone comes in?' she breathed against his ear, sending a pleasant shiver down his spine.

'Nah, I already got my lunch and meds. They won't bother me for a while,' Adrien assured her. 'Cuddle time!' he whisper-cried and fell backwards earning a surprised squeak from her. 'Come, my bug-pillow,' he nuzzled her neck and breathed the divine scent of her hair. 'I missed you so much!'

'I missed you too, goof,' she giggled.

'Your goof,' by now this apparently became their routine. Adrien brushed his nose against hers and stole a quick kiss. Then he pulled the covers over the two of them. 'Now hush and snuggle, like the the good bug you are,' he ordered.

Ladybug scooted closer and laid her head on his chest, 'As you wish,' she complied.

They stayed like this, wrapped in each other's embrace until Adrien fell asleep. When he woke up, she was gone. The only evidence that it wasn't a dream was the cute little doodle of a cartoon Adrien chasing a ladybug, that she had left by his bed.

Marinette got sick the next day. Thankfully a certain cat could keep her company.

* * *

 _AN: Please, let me know, how you liked this snippet? I appreciate your reviews, favs and follows greatly!_

 _As usual, a very big thank you to Remasa for beta reading this. Check out her new story "Merchant of Paris", it's great!_

 _The first two drabbles (I'll be posting the second one in 2 days) are entries for my giveaway on perditaalottachocolate-blog . tumblr . com , but if there are some events or scenes you'd like to go back to, drop an ask in my tumblr askbox or in the rewievs. I can't promise I will write for every ask nor can I predict when I can do this, because of my other WIPs, but if the inspiration strikes you'll be the first to know!_

 _There's art for this chapter - you can find in on my blog - search "april weather art" tag or "perdita draws"._


	32. Open Door Policy

_Author's Note: This takes place about 1,5 years after Chapter 29 "The Wall". Adrinette is long established as a teenage couple._

* * *

 **32\. Open Door Policy**

On the day of her 16th birthday Marinette woke up to a pleasant rumble vibrating in her ear. She remembered it was Sunday so she had nowhere to be and nothing to do. The rumble was lulling her to sleep; it was hard not to give in to its call. She sighed contently and snuggled closer to her warm, toned pillow, ready to drift off into slumber again.

And then quite unexpectedly the pillow snuggled back. Marinette jumped and released a startled squeak. She opened her eyes and saw her boyfriend's face millimeters from her own. He was deep in his sleep, snoring lightly, as always when he lay on his back. The girl blinked the sleep away from her eyes. Some details about this situation didn't add up.

First of all, yes, Adrien happened to stay the night once in a while, and for this occasion her parents brought an inflatable mattress to her room. The boy was supposed to sleep on the floor level, while Marinette used her loft bed. The bed that now was empty, because both of them were lying on Adrien's spare bedding. Last thing Marinette remembered was binging a show a show in the evening. Apparently she didn't make it to her bed.

Oops.

Second of all, the trapdoor to her room, that according to the open door policy was supposed to stay open when Adrien was in her room, was now closed. Neither of them would have closed it. In the two years of their dating history they complied to the request of her parents and of Monsieur Agreste. The door stayed open. Until today.

Uh-oh.

Marinette wasn't sure how the trapdoor got closed, but she had a bad feeling that whoever had done it, took a good look at the two of them sleeping together. Suddenly the air in her room became very hot and it had nothing to do with the heat coming from the sleeping body of her boyfriend. She was about to hyperventilate, when she spotted a card resting in front of the trapdoor, next to a plate with still warm rolls, cheese bread and cookies and a jug of orange juice.

Careful not to wake Adrien up she reached out for the card.

"Happy 16th birthday, dear!" she read. "As of today the Open Door Policy is cancelled. Enjoy your Sunday! Maman & Papa."

By this point Marinette was beet red. Now she was sure that both of her parents had seen the two of them, before they officially closed the door. Well, nothing could be done about it, but she intended to enjoy her Sunday and her newly received privilege in the best way possible.

She draped her arm around Adrien's chest and nuzzled his neck.

'Mmmmm, bug?' he murmured drowsily.

'The door is closed,' she whispered, kissing the line of his jaw.

'The- what?' Adrien's eyes shot open. 'W-why?'

Marinette waved the card in front of his face. 'Apparently the policy took effect only until I turned 16,' she smirked.

Her boyfriends face stretched into a sly grin. 'What a thoughtful gift,' he snickered. 'Happy birthday, Princess!' the boy turned to her, while he reached for his bag. 'I got you something I hope you'll like,' he whispered, blindly trying to find what he was looking for. Marinette made it more difficult, because she chose that moment to press her lips to his in a languid kiss.

'Like there was even the slightest chance she won't,' they heard the gloomy voice of the kwami of doom. 'Tik, there's cheese bread and cookies. How about an early breakfast?' Plagg called into the room.

'Plagg,' the kwami of creation hissed from their perch above the loft bed, 'just shut up, will ya?'

'What?' he spluttered indignantly. 'You heard your girl. The door is closed.'

'So what?' Tikki scolded him. 'You're interrupting,' she rolled her eyes to the couple on the mattress.

'Am I?' the little cat raised his brows in surprise. 'It doesn't look like anything they've never done,' he shrugged. 'Or anything I've never seen,' he added, chuckling to himself.

Adrien's ears turned an interesting shade of red, and Marinette pretended (poorly) she didn't hear anything. The red kwami made an "okay-lemme-handle-it" gesture to the two human occupants of the room.

'Now that the door is closed, and they are both older, you have to give them some space,' Tikki lectured. 'You know, youth has its ri-'

'Oh for the love of chocolate, Tikki, could you be _more_ embarrassing?' her chosen exclaimed with an exasperated huff. 'You're worse than Plagg. At least he only comments on food.'

'Mwahaha,' the black sprite guffawed. 'See? You shut up,' he shot back at his fellow kwami.

'Why don't you take some bread and cookies and eat on the balcony?' Adrien suggested sheepishly.

'Say no more!' Plagg zipped to the food plate. He balanced the biggest cookie and three slices of cheese bread between his paws and, with a wink, he zoomed back to the loft bed.

'Thank… you?' the boy stared after him, surprised at this unexpected assistance.

Marinette giggled. 'Don't worry, he just wanted the bread. And possibly also get back at Tikki. Anyway,' she scooted closer, happy to snuggle without witnesses and interruptions, 'where were we?' she purred, as her finger traced complex loops on his chest.

'Ah, yes,' Adrien's hand finally closed over the small package. 'Happy birthday, _Purrrrrincessss_ ,' he drawled sinking his nose into her hair. 'Here's a little gift for you,' he added passing her the present.

The girl made herself comfortable on her back, with her head resting on Adrien's shoulder as she unwrapped the little box. An elegant logo on the cover made her wince. This was expensive.

'Adrien, it's too much!' she started, but he put his hand over hers and opened the box.

'Hush, it's not as a big deal as the brand would suggest,' he replied. 'Just look inside.'

It was a charm bracelet. Delicate, modest, yet stylish, beautiful in its simplicity. Only a fancy jeweler could accomplish a feat like this. Silver chain with an intricate pattern looked as if it was weaved of pure moonlight. Seven charms dangled from it - each making Marinette smile more.

An Eiffel tower. A butterfly. A sun. A heart. A loaf of bread. A raindrop. An umbrella. Their relationship in a nutshell.

'It's beautiful,' Marinette whispered in awe, grazing her fingers over the trinkets. 'It's perfect. Thank you,' she murmured, shifting and placing a delicate kiss on his cheek.

'Only the best for my Princess,' Adrien winked, wrapping his arms around her. 'My Duchess,' he pressed his lips to her temple. 'My Queen,' he nuzzled at her hair. 'My Lady,' he whispered in her ear, sending goosebumps all over her skin. 'I hope you don't mind that I didn't put anything connected to our other identities, but well… they are secret for a reason.'

'Of course I don't mind,' she giggled. 'This is gorgeous the way it is.'

'I'm glad,' Adrien took the bracelet from her hands. 'May I?' he asked, unclasping it.

Marinette offered her wrist and he fastened the chain over it, completing it with a brush of his lips over the inside of her forearm. She sighed contently, when he kept trailing kisses up her arm, then moving to her collarbone and neck.

'Mmmm,' he droned, 'this is nice.'

The girl hummed in agreement tilting her head to give him more access. Adrien wrapped himself around her back and rubbed his cheek against her jaw.

'Are you scent marking me, Chaton?' she whispered.

'And if I am?' he replied, a flirtatious lilt to his voice.

'Then I'd say you missed a bit here,' Marinette turned her head to present him with her other cheek and he happily complied, causing a fit of giggles from the girl.

Soon they both drowned in small caresses and soft pets, making the most of the first Sunday morning without the open door policy.

When Plagg popped his head inside not even ten minutes later he released a scandalized snort. 'That's disgusting!' he whined.

'Plaaaaaaagg,' Tikki whisper-yelled above him. 'Don't loooook!'

He turned to the red kwami, flabbergasted. 'What are you talking about?'

'You shouldn't interrupt!' she scolded, narrowing her eyes at him.

The black cat shook his head with a deep sigh. 'Chill, Tikki,' he huffed in exasperation. 'The door is closed for the first time in two years. We took our butts outside,' he complained, 'and here they are,' he waved his paw dramatically in the direction of the two teens, ' _sleeping!_ '

'Sleeping?' Tikki's eyes got as big as her favorite treat.

'Look for yourself,' he moved away allowing her a glimpse of the floor below.

There, on the inflatable mattress, among blankets, in a morning sunspot lay a two headed octopus. Marinette's head rested on Adrien's chest, and their limbs were so tangled in each other it was hard to tell where one of them ended and the other one begun. They were snoring peacefully, their breaths even, their faces relaxed and lips stretched in soft smiles. They looked as if they were exactly where they were supposed to be. They belonged there.

Tikki sighed contently. She doubted she would ever meet a more precious pair of cinnamon rolls. They knew they had time, they could take this morning to nap and cuddle instead of other activities that would undoubtedly come with the closed door. She turned to Plagg and was satisfied to see a tender smile on his face. He wiped it away as soon as he noticed her staring.

'What?'

'Nothing,' the red kwami shrugged. 'I'm just happy to see them like this.'

'Me too,' the black sprite muttered. 'Me too. Now how about another cookie?'

'I won't say no to that,' Tikki giggled, closing the skylight behind her.

* * *

 _AN: Please, let me know, how you liked this snippet? I appreciate your reviews, favs and follows greatly! There's an art for this chapter on my tumblr blog. Search the tag "april weather art"._

 _As usual, a very big thank you to Remasa for beta reading this. Check out her new oneshot "Gabriel's Panic Attack", it's hilarious!_

 _This drabble is the last entry for my giveaway on perditaalottachocolate-blog . tumblr . com . I got an ask for another one (Marichat), that I'll be working on soonish. If there are some events or scenes in this universe you'd like to go back to, drop an ask in my tumblr askbox or in the comments – but if you want to pique my interest, I suggest you write more than just a pairing. I can't promise I will write for every ask nor can I predict when I can do this, because of my other WIPs, but if the inspiration strikes you'll be the first to know!_


	33. Little Red Riding Hood

_Author's Note:_ _It's been a while, but I like coming back to this universe! This was inspired by an anon ask I got on tumblr, which I may have misinterpreted a bit, but shhh._

 _Context: Mylene's father was asked to direct a play at a children's' hospital and he thought the heroes could participate. Ladybug declined because reasons. Chat was more than eager to take the offered part._

* * *

 **33\. Little Red Riding Hood**

'I still can't believe you've agreed to play,' Marinette shook her head, tying a knot on the last stitch of his costume.

'I still can't believe you bailed on me,' Chat replied from behind the script sheets.

'Well, I need to save my acting talents for making up excuses as Ladybug,' the girl winked at him. 'Besides, we both know I am not that good at acting. Chloe would be perfect for that.'

The boy snorted, 'Maybe as the Big Bad Wolf,' he supplied happily. ' _Moi? In a children's play?_ ' he screeched in a high pitched voice. ' _Ridiculous, utterly ridiculous!'_ he flicked his hair back as offensive as he dared, and cocked a hip out while pursing his lips.

Marinette bent over with laughter. 'Oh, she'd claw your eyes out for that,' she guffawed.

'Then you better not tell on me, princess,' Chat flashed her a toothy grin.

The girl wiped away a stray tear from her eye and sighed. 'So are we rehearsing or what?'

'Right,' her feline boyfriend donned the red hood with long satin ribbons. His cat ears peeked from under the fabric where Marinette cut and rimmed holes for this purpose. Then with a dramatic swing he put on the red cape. 'How do I look?' he wiggled his brows.

'Like the biggest dork in Paris,' Marinette giggled. 'Why this part?'

'Well, the heroine that would be purrfect for the role was unavailable,' he whispered confidentially, 'I didn't want the kids to be disappointed.'

'So who's going to be the Big Bad Wolf in your place then?'

Chat's smile turned sly, as if he'd just caught a canary. 'You're gonna love it actually,' he teased. 'When you see the first run!' He blew a raspberry at her.

Marinette huffed and pouted. 'Not fair!' she complained. 'I sewed your costume and I'm helping you to learn your lines.' She crossed her arms over her chest. 'You can at least tell me that!'

The boy chuckled. 'Would you believe me, if I said it's Chloe?'

'Nope,' she stuck out her tongue at him.

' _Fine_ ,' he threw his hands up in surrender. 'It's Mylene,' he said with a satisfied smirk.

'Mylene.' Marinette deadpanned. 'Is going to be the _Big. Bad. Wolf_?'

'Yessss,' he purred. 'Since her father is directing, he decided to show a little nepotism for the sake of challenging her fears.'

'You're right. I love it!' She giggled. 'Mylene's going to be an awesome wolf!'

'I know,' Chat's lips stretched in a satisfied smirk. 'Now let's make sure my Little Red Riding Hood can stand up to her performance, shall we?' He rustled the script he'd been holding and adjusted the cape.

'With pleasure,' Marinette found the right page of her copy. She cleared her throat. 'Ready when you are,' she announced.

The boy's smile contorted into a mask of anxiety. He looked at her with innocent kitten eyes, which must have been his Little Red Riding Hood impression.

'Oh, Granny,' Chat gasped in a pretty good falsetto. 'What a deep voice you have!'

' **The better to greet you with** ,' Marinette boomed theatrically to her boyfriend's utmost joy.

The corners of his lips quirked, but he managed to keep a straight face - or rather to keep the confused face of a little girl. The result would have been better without the ears and the claws. There was no way Marinette would pass on the opportunity to tease him a bit.

'Oh, Granny,' Chat carried on in falsetto. 'What a long tail you have!'

' **Talk about pot calling the kettle black, my child!** ' the girl roared.

The hero shot her an unimpressed look. She fluttered her lashes innocently. He shrugged in reply, apparently brushing it off. After all he was still practising his lines, while she didn't need to learn anything.

'Oh, Granny,' he continued, giving her the stink eye. 'What big ears you have!'

' **Apparently it runs in the family, Kitty Hood** ,' she made no attempt at hiding her grin.

Chat pressed his lips into a thin line. He took a peek at the script. Then something dangerous flashed in his eyes as if he'd made up his mind. Marinette would lie if she said she didn't like the thrill that went down her spine when he looked at her.

'Oh, Granny,' he dropped his voice to a purr. 'What nice eyes you have!'

'T-that's the line in the script?' Marinette stuttered under the sheer force of his smoulder.

'Yup, definitely,' he nodded innocently despite the fire burning in his cat eyes.

'The better to see you with?' she ventured, not really looking at the sheets.

The boy chuckled, extremely pleased with himself. He strutted towards her with his trademark swagger and took the script from her hands. Then he made a show of kissing her knuckles and running his fingers over her skin, causing a serious case of goosebumps.

'Oh, Granny,' Chat wiggled his brows, keeping his voice low. 'What delicate hands you have!'

Marinette couldn't help but to smile at his antics. She didn't even offer him any reply, when he spoke again.

'Oh, Granny,' he murmured seductively, eyes skipping meaningfully to her mouth. 'What pretty lips you have!'

She raised a brow. ' _Granny_?'

To his credit, he faltered only for a second before gasping in an exaggerated astonishment, 'Will you look at that! It was a purrincess enchanted into a grandmother by the Big Bad Wolf and it seems the curse was broken by a brave knight in a red cape!'

'And a red hood,' Marinette supplied.

'And a red hood,' Chat confirmed. 'It's mandatory for brave knights from what I've heard.'

'Satin ribbons too?' She grabbed the ends of the hood and pulled, the motion causing the boy to lower his head.

His smile was so wide now, that only ears prevented him from losing the top of his head. 'That's every brave knight's secret weapon,' he leaned in.

'Who would have thought,' the girl starred boldly into his impossibly green eyes, trying her best to fight off the goofy grin. 'Now I believe you mentioned lips?' she reminded.

'Pretty lips,' Chat nodded moving even closer. 'That's what i said.' His nose briefly brushed hers. 'And I bet you won't guess what those lips are good for,' he murmured huskily.

'Oh, I have a few ideas…' Marinette returned the nose to nose rub, her fingers tightening over the ribbons.

'Do tell,' the boy rasped.

His hands locked on her waist and she felt the claws digging lightly into her sides. She loved it when he kneaded at her and thanks to a few months of enthusiastic exploring he knew exactly the right places to do so.

'How about a little demonstration?' she hummed, her lips teasingly close to his.

'How about you stop talking and kiss me already,' he offered, proving that her stalling had been effective.

'Your wish is my command,' Marinette breathed against his lips. 'My Little Red Kitty Hood,' she added before closing the space between them.

* * *

 _AN: As usual, let me know, how you liked it! I appreciate your favs, follows and reviews! I try to reply to reviews, so if you ask a question I yours, make sure you're not a guest, because there is no way for me to reply to that._

 _A huge thank you to my dear Remasa for beta reading this. Check out her stories, you won't regret it!_

 _This drabble is the first entry for my 1k followers giveaway on my tumblr blog (perditaalottachocolate-blog . tumblr . com)._

 _If there are some events or scenes in April Weather universe you'd like to go back to, drop an ask in my tumblr askbox or in the comments. I can't promise I will write for every ask nor can I predict when I can do this, because of my other WIPs, but if the inspiration strikes you'll be the first to know!_


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